As requested…here are the instructions for the macrame’ necklace part of the Falling Leaf Watercolor Pendant painting from October 2012 PaintWorks Magazine. I am not too savy when it comes to loading a document, so I hope it works. If it doesn’t, we’ll try something else. Let me know if you have any trouble.

Felt the need to put this out there since some of you will see me hobbling around the HOOT convention in August. I took up running about a year ago and participate in several 5K races in my area of Ohio. I train along several backroads near our cabin in rural Auglaize County. Last Monday evening, two men on motorcycles ran me off the road. I got out of their way safely and ran along the edge of the road until they passed me. As I got back on the road, my left foot stepped half on the stone edge and half on the blacktop (which was about 1 1/2″ higher than the stone). My foot rolled over the edge and I took a pretty bad fall. My left knee and right hand both came down in the stones first. Then my right knee hit the blacktop. I had such terrific forward motion that my right hand folded under my body, allowing the pavement to scrape the outside of my right arm. Then my shoulder came down on the blacktop as the right side of my face slid through the stones. I finally came to a stop with the right side of my head hitting the blacktop behind me… like an exclamation mark! I laid there for just a minute to catch my breath and then tried to get up. I didn’t know what part of me hurt the worst, but found out pretty quickly I couldn’t stand on that left foot. I then realized that I was a mile from home without a cell phone and the nearest neighbor was 1/4 mile away! I couldn’t just sit there and wait an hour for my husband to come looking for me. So, I started to hop on one foot. By this time I was sweaty, and crying, and had blood running from my hand, head and both knees. Two vehicles went by without even slowing down. I just kept praying that my neighbor was home. Thirty minutes went by as I hopped my way from the road onto the neighbor’s porch. Thank God they were there and drove me home. I ended up in the emergency room at St. Ritas Hospital in Lima, where everything was stablized. Through various doctor’s appointments, I’ve found out that I have a sprained right wrist and possible fracture in the hand and a broken tibia on my left ankle (and sprains in various muscles etc). I only have to wear a moon boot and hand brace for six weeks. In time, they will heal, along with all the bruises and road rash. I feel extremely lucky to be alive! Please watch for people on the roads. Be patient and give them plenty of room. Stop if you see someone hurt. You can at least make a phone call for them. Runners, Walkers, & Bikers: Please wear reflective clothing or bright colors and bring your cell phone. Be aware of what is on the road with you. Don’t do this activity too early or too late in the day. Learn from my story and save yourself a lot of pain!

Just testing the link from my website to my Facebook wall. Would like to post in both at the same time.