There Be Ghosts

There Be Ghosts
There are no ghosts to see, just a feeling of loneliness in the stillness of the woods. The faint chirp of a single bird echoes in the lonely grove.
First coat of paint. I shall take my time with this painting.
I love watching Columbo and Perry Mason while I paint. There is something magical about my old favorites; they help me focus on my work. 

WIP 20 X 14 OVAL STRETCHED CANVAS

ANNABELLE and M - NEW ETSY SHOP NAME

 A New Etsy Shop Name:

ETSY SHOP > Annabelle and M

ANOTHER GHOST OF A CAT - GENTLEMAN X 👀🐾🐾🐾🐾🖤

ANOTHER GHOST OF A CAT - GENTLEMAN X 👀🐾🐾🐾🐾🖤

He felt someone's eyes on his face. He looked up, across the room, on the top of the picture shelf; the portrait of a gentleman cat in a smoking jacket, wearing an Ascot around his neck, looked back at him. Immediately, Florence didn't waste time and headed straight for the cat. Another painting for his collection he wanted: that's what an art collector does and doesn't worry about where it will hang. When a cat dressed in human clothing, especially when wearing an ascot, becomes available, you don't let it escape you, very rare indeed! It's what you call Anthropomorphism, animals wearing people's clothes, and in Victorian times, it was very much in fashion. Florence grabbed the painting and checked the artist's mark: as he'd suspected, a Neuville, a Mitsou Neuville.

The gentleman cat had no name, for now. There was something mysterious and captivating about the tabby cat with the pronounced M on its forehead, and the more Florence looked at him, the more he couldn't look away. It's his eyes he thought.They want to speak to me. 







Another little share from the book - FLORENCE BLUME👀🖤 




*ALL OUR VISITORS BRING HAPPINESS

SOME BY COMING AND OTHERS BY GOING *




"Believe nothing you hear and half of what you see." 




A mother/daughter Ghostly Adventure, writing together for the first time about their favorite subject, the supernatural.

♥️ Annabelle & M ♥️ FLORENCE BLUME -MERRICKVILLE

© 2023

A GHOST OF A CAT🐾🐾🐾🐾

A GHOST OF A CAT

Maggie and Bats' mom, Shy, came for her dinner and then left. 
How's that for gratitude?

She was never a mom; she hated her job and chose to abandon her three kittens in our backyard. After all, she was just a cat! A cat who was overwhelmed by the enormity of parenthood to three kittens.
Maggie was left to take care of her little brother, Bat. A sister and now his mother; she protected him and did a good job. 
After all, she was just a cat - with a heart! 
Good thing Maggie turned out right. Bat certainly, would not have faired well outdoors.
I wish we had done more to keep Shy and tame her: maybe she would have cared more for her babies. She is only a memory now and a screen saver.
Early mornings always remind me my cat Maggie has never forgotten. She will come and sit on my lap, snuggle, and purr, and the minute I open my computer and the screensaver comes on, she perks up and stares. She remembers.


“Mother is a verb as well as a noun. We all, male and female, have the capacity to mother others.
And we can each, always, mother ourselves.” 
― Orna Ross

DO NOT STAND BY MY GRAVE , AND WEEP

Florence Blume - A Ghost Story {Merrickville} Annabelle&M © 2023

Do not stand

By my grave, and weep.

I am not there,

I do not sleep—

I am a thousand winds that blow

I am the diamond glints in snow

I am the sunlight on ripened grain,

I am the gentle, autumn rain.

As you awake with morning’s hush,

I am the swift, up-flinging rush

Of quiet birds in circling flight,

I am the day transcending night.

Do not stand

By my grave, and cry—

I am not there,

I did not die.

-Clare Harner 1934 

When words and music touch my soul...listen

Mariage d'amour - Paul de Senneville

@batandmaggie @hauntedwalk @rideau_walkingtours @painteral613 @writerswarmth 

#painting #blackandwhite #catart #spooky #halloween #storypainting #bookstagram #instagood #beauty#beautiful#merrickville #haunted #afterlife #supernatural #cemetery #graveyard #Annabelle&m #love #moon#moonlight#florenceblume #trees #ghostadventures #spookyseason #blackcat #picoftheday #instadaily #art #poem#donotstandatmygraveandweep 

FLORENCE BLUME

FLORENCE BLUME - A GHOST STORY

Before he died, Florence Blume was a solitary man who enjoyed living alone with his cats in his beautiful home in the woods. At the entrance to his house, he hung an old Irish proverb, 'Beware of people who dislike cats. It seemed to keep unwanted visitors and fake friends away. 

The isle of green was an easy place to fall in love with flowers. Florence knew what he wanted to do with the rest of his life. 

He was a professor at the nearby college and taught Botany. 

All his free time was spent tending the gardens surrounding his home, always in the company of his two cats, Maggie and Bat. 

Florence had a favorite flower, The Lily of the Valley, and his favorite season was Spring. One night, after dinner, while listening to his classical music and reading poetry, he came across a poem by Tchaikovsky, 'Lilies of the Valley '- He had discovered a kindred spirit who loved the same season and flower as he. The two souls had the same thought, after death, darkness, or light? Florence knew the joys of the earth; before and after his death.  




LILIES OF THE VALLEY -TCHAIKOVSKY


"I wait for spring. And now the enchantress appears,

The wood has cast off its shroud

And prepares for us shade,

And the rivers start to flow, and the grove is filled with sound,

And at last, the long-looked-for day is here!

Quick to the woods!—I race along the familiar path.

Can my dreams have come true, my longings be fulfilled?—

There he is! Bending to the earth, with trembling hand

I pluck the wondrous gift of the enchantress Spring.

O lily of the valley, why do you so please the eye?

Other flowers there are more sumptuous and grand,

With brighter colours and livelier patterns,

Yet they have not your mysterious fascination.

Where lies the secret of your charms? What do you prophesy to the soul?

With what do you attract me, with what gladden my heart?

Is it that you revive the ghost of former pleasures,

Or is it future bliss that you promise us?" excerpt from Lilies of The Valley was written by Tchaikovsky in December 1878 while he was in Florence.

Return To Happiness

Return To Happiness

 The scent of the lily was sweet, the old ghost's favorite spring flower. Small pure, white bells sprung up in May, and each spring, he anxiously awaited their arrival. There was a special place he had found. A country road passed by the back lot of a house, in the ditch across from the yard, and a patch of lilies grew amongst poison ivy. He had dug some up for his yard and planted two stone pots with moss in one spring, and he always picked large bouquets filling the house with their beautiful heavy scent. The beauty of the afterlife, flowers were always in season, and this Christmas couldn't be without fresh lilies. A long time ago, he had read a book titled "The Meaning of Flowers" and found the lily of the valley's meaning quite beautiful - Return to Happiness. 

"Believe nothing you hear and half of what you see." 

As I mentioned before, these paintings are almost complete. If I feel something I've missed in the process, I will return to it and add in hopefully, removing nothing else from the illustration. Editing not only the writing but the illustrations as well. Some may never make it into the book.

 A mother/daughter Ghostly Adventure, writing together for the first time about their favorite subject, the supernatural. 

♥️ Annabelle & M ♥️

“A writer who waits for ideal conditions under which to work will die without putting a word to paper.”E.B.WHITE - WRITING A GHOST STORY

WRITING A GHOST STORY 👀

I am a romantic for ghost stories. 

Spooky, mysterious, and entertaining spooks on tv always trap me for an hour or two in telling their scary tales. I believe many people believe in ghosts. I never was one to keep a bucket list, although I do have a few things on a list I would like to achieve before that time; writing a ghost story is one. I wish I could write, and I wish I could paint, I wish I could play the piano. Unfortunately, I do none of those things well. My writing is atrocious. If not for Grammarly and my daughter, I would be lost. Still, I have the desire to write a spooky story. A couple of quotes by E.B. White, one of my favorite authors, inspire me to keep writing. “I admire anybody who has the guts to write anything at all.” And ... “A writer who waits for ideal conditions under which to work will die without putting a word to paper.” ― E.B. White. So true. M, my daughter, is my ghostwriter. We are collaborating on this ghostly tale. I recently watched Eugene Levy's, 'The Reluctant Traveler. He met up with a gondolier in Venice and talked about working with their kids. Mr.Levy mentioned how much he had enjoyed working with his son Daniel for seven years. So now, mother and daughter are working together on a ghost book. Today is my birthday; I turn 66. I was born on March 10th, 1957, a wonderful year. And the year I die, well, hopefully, be just as wonderful. No matter how difficult, I want to reach my goal; write the ghost book with my daughter. In the end, I leave behind an artistic legacy for my children. When one has a will, there is always a way. ♥️ Annabelle & M ♥️ © 2023 @batandmaggie

MAGGIE

BAT

STORMY, STORMY, STORMY WEATHER

A perfect stormy night for a good sleep, the old ghost thought. 

It poured and rained, such a sweet sleep filled with dreams of his earthly life and memories. Stormy, stormy, stormy weather was his favorite weather.

And then, the sounds of the thundering storm were interrupted by the breaking of glass. Ghost got out of bed and went downstairs to investigate who had disturbed his sleep: a baby owl; perched on the broken window pane. Maggie and Bat were wondering why he was there.







The day is cold, and dark, and dreary;

It rains, and the wind is never weary;

The vine still clings to the mouldering wall,

But at every gust the dead leaves fall,

And the day is dark and dreary.




My life is cold, and dark, and dreary;

It rains, and the wind is never weary;

My thoughts still cling to the mouldering Past,

But the hopes of youth fall thick in the blast,

And the days are dark and dreary.




Be still, sad heart! and cease repining;

Behind the clouds is the sun still shining;

Thy fate is the common fate of all,

Into each life some rain must fall,

Some days must be dark and dreary.

-Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

A mother/daughter Ghostly Adventure, writing together for the first time about their favorite subject, the supernatural. ♥️ Annabelle & M ♥️ © 2023 @batandmaggie (Daughter's instagram account)

ART, CATS, GHOSTS, WITCHES AND WOLVES WIP OIL ON CANVAS

I believe in God and so for me what the lyrics in this song mean is that God loves everyone and has no favourites. My daughter is a Supernatural fan and she saved the last season until now. My husband and I are watching it with her and with every episode I find myself looking up songs they played on the show. This one,hubby beat me to it. Someone behind the scenes has excellent taste in music, lol. Love SUPERNATURAL and will be watching reruns for some time and of course the new spinoff. 

MAGGIE THOUGHT I WAS DOING A CAT PHOTOSHOOT, LOL

GOD WAS NEVER ON YOUR SIDE ~ MOTORHEAD

If the stars fall down on me
And the sun refused to shine
Then may the shackles be undone
May all the old words cease to rhyme
If the sky turned into stone
It will matter not at all
For there is no heaven in the sky
Hell does not wait for our downfall
Let the voice of reason shine
Let the pious vanish for all time
God's face is hidden, all unseen
You can't ask Him what it all means
He was never on your side
God was never on your side
Let right or wrong alone decide
God was never on your side
See ten thousand ministries
See the holy, righteous dogs
They claim to heal, but all they do is steal
Abuse your faith, cheat, and rob
If God is wise, why is He still
When these false prophets call Him friend?
Why is He silent? Is He blind?
Are we abandoned in the end?
Let the sword of reason shine
Let us be free of prayer and shrine
God's face is hidden, turned away
He never has a word to say
He was never on your side
God was never on your side
Let right or wrong alone decide
God was never on your side
No, no, no!
He was never on your side
God was never on your side
Never, never, never, never
Never on your side
Never on your side
God was never on your side
Never on your side

Songwriters: Philip Campbell / Micael Delaoglou / Ian Kilmister

WORKING ON A WITCH AND THEN WILL BE ADDING THE WOLF

 Motörhead- God was Never On Your Side Supernatural -  Road So Far) p.s. The music video is amazing. Love it

GOD WAS NEVER ON YOUR SIDE - MOTORHEAD (SUPERNATURAL-THE ROAD SO FAR )

TO CATCH A GHOST

Do Cats See Ghosts? 

Well, I think they do.

Bat and Maggies' New Year's Resolution: To Catch A Ghost and bring it to me. Be it, mouse, bird, bat, or human. : ) 

ANY FRIENDLY GHOST WILL DO, CASPER, GUS, OR MAYBE EVEN THE GHOST OF MR. CHICKEN : ) 🐾🐾.                🐾




👀Remember, these cats have Supernatural Spooktacular Senses: they can hunt anything down, even ghosts!




FOR JANUARY HAPPY CATURDAY THEME: YOUR CATS NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTION




HAPPY CATURDAY ❤️🐾🐾          🐾  



Have you seen this movie?

THE GHOST AND MR. CHICKEN 

' Haunted ' by artist Stacy Guerra Rodriguez

This house is haunted!


'Haunted'


by artist Stacy Guerra Rodriguez

A haunting portrait to hunt my home - perfectly spooky! An original I recently purchased by artist Stacy Guerra Rodriguez of Coffee With Frida Inspired by Old Hollywood classic actress Loretta Young. Thanks so much, Stacy. Very happy, she now haunts my house.

STORY BOOK DAYS THE CRAZY CAT LADY COLORING BOOK

Story Book Days ☆★.٭•:*:•٭.★☆ ☆★.٭•:*:•٭

Every day is a lesson learned. I seriously need to keep a book on computer tech stuff because I tend to forget just about everything I have learned through the years. This morning I searched on creating a watermark and managed to make one in pink for M''s illustration of "E.T." the Cat from the coloring book we are presently working on, "The Crazy Cat Lady Coloring Book".©

We are busy adding coloring pages to our Etsy store every day, working on illustrations, paintings, and writing stories; of course, still working on my snowy quilt, 157 posies from one ball of yarn ( 454g )so far.
"Sleep Walk " ~ is one of several paintings which is part of a story  painted by me

Victorian Roses ~ Finally listed this set on Etsy 

GHOSTALES ~ ETSY SHOP
https://www.etsy.com/ca/shop/GHOSTALES

DORMIR SOUS UN CYPRES

"Dormir sous un cyprès, or “to sleep under a cypress” means to be dead."

I left it for dead.

When I was inspired to paint The Quiet Garden, it was after I had come upon a beautiful garden behind The Saint John the Baptist Anglican Church in Richmond, Ontario, next to the church graveyard. But, I failed in capturing the serene landscape of The Quiet Garden and tossed the painting into the woodpile.

Sometimes, what I have in mind does not always turn out the way I conceive it in my mind. Now, I have arrived where the road leads to though not so sure how to go on. I will need to give it some thought before I make my next brush stroke.

THE ROAD NOT TAKEN


Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;


Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,


And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.


I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.


~Robert Frost

PURRANORMAL INVESTIGATOR 👀 🔍 IN THE HAUNTED CHAMBER

EMMA'S SUBMISSION FOR HAPPY CATURDAY THEME
" IT'S A CAT'S JOB"

Do you believe in GHOSTS? 
BAT DOES! 
BAT, PURRANORMAL INVESTIGATOR 

On dark and spooky nights, when all have retired to bed, you'll find Bat hunting ghosts, the ghost hunting cat who never misses an anomaly and whose dream is for one day to go on a Ghost Adventure with Zak Bagans. 

TIME FOR A GHOST ADVENTURE, BAT?

"Each heart has its haunted chamber,
Where the silent moonlight falls!
On the floor are mysterious footsteps,
There are whispers along the walls! 
And mine at times is haunted
By phantoms of the Past
As motionless as shadows
By the silent moonlight cast. 
A form sits by the window,
That is not seen by day,
For as soon as the dawn approaches
It vanishes away. "

A Mysterious Presence - Eyes of March March 7th 👀

Spooky old B & W flicks are great to watch and these two cats, Bat and sister Maggie adore watching them with us. They see things we don't see 👀 We believe in ghosts. Do you?

Photo by M Three Cats A Dog and A Camera 

CASTEL BOUS 🎃🎃🎃👀🧹🐈

Urban Dictionary

Bous is a term used to define any: thing, feeling, emotion place, person, situation, experience or comment that is highly positive or loved by an individual or social group. 

'Castel Bous'

This Halloween Mixed Media Painting is done in 

Acrylic and Ink on small miniature wood panel. 

Still working on a fence for the front of the Castel : )

Can you spot the skair-ee cat ?

Boo came to mind because of the peeking ghost so when I asked hubby for help with a title he sent me the above definition and in the subject wrote "Castel Bous" misspelling 'Castle' with Castel.

The name Castel to me sounded like a wine,  which turns out there is a wine from France called, Maison Castel. Of course when stringing the two words together Castel Bous you immediately think booze :  ) I found it kind of funny so I kept the title ...'Castel Bous' * Hope you like it. 

Anna 🎃🎃🎃👀🧹🐈