A MUST READ

Art collections are found all around the world.  Most of us won't have the opportunity to view the majority of them in person.  But thankfully there are books dedicated to presenting the awe inpiring art from these collections that we all have access to.

One of my personal favorites is "Art Beyond Isms:  Masterworks from El Greco to Picasso in the Phillips Collection".  This beautiful book was compiled  by Eliza Rathbone & Johanna Halford-McLeod and is an introduction to the Phillips Collection in Washington, D.C.    It provides insight into the creation of one of the greatest private collections of modern art in the world.  There are beautiful photos and stunning color plates and it spotlights more than 50 European works from the Phillips permanent collection.  These works include Van Gogh's   House at Auvers,   Picasso's    The Blue Room, and  Renoir's  Luncheon of the Boating Party.

I promise it is a book you will go back to time and time again.

Episode Two A Charming Companion

Episode Two  A Charming Companion

  "Good morning, Sweetheart!  I'm so glad to see you're feeling better this morning.  Why don't I make us some coffee?  Okay?" he cooed.  She nodded.  Wow!  All this sweet talk and he made coffee, too?  He got up, unfolding a tall, slim, very attractive body.  She watched him walk over to the coffee pot in the entryway, rethinking her 'Hey, Bozo' speech.  Soon she heard the puffing and dripping of a coffeemaker.

  "Yes, I do feel better,” she agreed, “but how did you know?"  He let out a squeaky laugh while putting on his robe.

  "Easy!  You didn't scream at me at the top of your lungs, or call me ‘Buddy,’ or the more gangster-like version ‘Buster,’ or my absolute favorite morning insult, the clownish ‘Bozo.’  And you didn’t order me to get the hell out of here, as you gestured toward the door like a demented flight attendant during the emergency drill on the flight to hell.  You didn’t tell me to leave you alone.  And you didn’t threaten me with legal action."

  “Legal action?”

  “To get our marriage annulled.”

  "Oh!” she nodded.  “I'm sorry!"

  "It's okay.  I understand," he beamed a gorgeous smile at her.  "I'm just so happy you're feeling better!"  He brought her a cup of coffee.  “Here, your favorite blend.”

  "Thank you.”  I have a favorite blend?  Since when?  She took a sip.  “Mmmm, this is really good,” she said pointing to the cup.  “Yea, well, about that.  I feel fine, but I don't really... remember.  Anything."

  "I know," he said looking down at the floor.

  "No.  No, I don’t think you do.  It’s not that I simply don’t remember what we did last night.    I don't remember how I got here.  I don’t remember where I work, or what I'm driving these days."

  "I know," he said softly.

  "No.  NO!  It gets much worse!  I don't know who I am, and I sure as hell don't know who you are!"

  "I know," he said on the brink of tears.  He held his arms open.  "Come here, Sweetheart.  At least this morning you don't think I'm some bad guy.  At least today you know that I'm your husband.  And you know you're safe when you’re with me, and you know I won't ever let anything bad happen to you."

  "Anything else!" she snarled at him.  He put his head down. 

  "Yes, Love, anything else."  He put his arms down, realizing she wasn't coming to him for comfort, the comfort he needed as much as she did.  Maybe more.

Amnesiac Samantha Blake wakes up naked in a hotel room.  A man she doesn't recognize is sound asleep beside her.  Has she been drugged?  Should she make a run for it?  Find out what happens to Samantha tomorrow in Episode Two.

Some titles of upcoming episodes of "Charming Deception':
       5.    So Who Am I?
     13.    Encryption
     15.    Through a Silvery Portal
     30.    Vegas, Elvis, and Twinkies
     

Episode One Confusion

Charming Deception

By

Carol Ann Kauffman

September 2, 2012

Episode One   Confusion

    Okay, where the hell am I?  She opened her eyes and didn't recognize her dimly lit surroundings.  She looked out the window.

It was still dark outside, very cloudy, not a star in the sky.  She was lying in bed.  Naked.  And judging from the smell of the lavender scent on the perfectly ironed, high thread-count sheets and pillowcases, she was either in a very high-end luxury hotel or in one of Martha Stewart's guest rooms.  A snore interrupted her thoughts.  She glanced over at the noisy lump lying beside her.  Nope.  Didn't recognize him.

    There's a very strong possibility, she said to herself, that I've been teleported back to the free-loving sixties.  She got up to go to the bathroom.  A glint of gold caught her eye from the ring finger of her left hand.  I'm married?  Oh, shit!  When did THIS happen?  This isn't the sixties!  This must be Vegas, Baby!  She crept quietly into the bathroom, closed the door, and snapped on the light.  Definitely a hotel.  Antiseptic.  Martha Stewart's guest bathroom would have scented candles and a sense of style, hospitality, and luxury.  And not so much white.  White walls, white floor, white towels, white shower curtain.  A rather bizarre-looking attachment on the faucet, and another one on the showerhead.  She looked in the mirror.

    Yikes!  Well, I give that bony lump sleeping beside me credit for marrying me when I look so bad!  Good Grief!  HE must be a total loser!  She examined her dull, spotty complexion, wild Einstein hair, and the bags under her eyes.  She rehearsed her speech to Bony Lump.

    "Hey! Bozo! Whatever happened between us, it was just some bizarre mistake.  Gather your things and get the hell out of here!  I'll contact my lawyer to annul this fiasco as soon as I get home.  Now go!"  Then she would point to the door for dramatic effect.

    As soon as I get home.  Home?  Where was home?  She couldn't remember.  She looked back at her reflection in the mirror.  She couldn't remember where she lived, or how she got here. She couldn't remember where she worked, or what she drove. 

    Hmmm. did Bony Lump drug me?  Did he drug me, take advantage of me, and then, MARRY me?  No, no, why would he do that?  That makes absolutely no sense.  She wiggled the gold ring with a very decent-sized brilliant cut diamond in the center.  Weighty.  Expensive.  Good fit.  And… slightly familiar.  She thought it was very beautiful.  Oh, look, a tan line!  Now, how can that be?  This has to be a dream.  She snapped off the light and crept silently back into bed and sighed.  The sooner I go back to sleep, the sooner I’ll wake up, and this bad dream will be over.  Bony Lump rolled over and pulled her to him gently, hugging her, patting her shoulder.

    "It was just a nightmare, Love.  I'm right here.  You're safe," he whispered sweetly in a sleepy voice.  "Go back to sleep.  I’ll protect you.  Always."  He kissed her head gently.  He had a wonderful voice.  British accent.  Kind.  Reassuring.  Gentle. Very touching.  And so she did.  She fell asleep in his arms, with her hand on his chest.

Verse

      Hi!  I am the Verse side of VISION &VERSE.  My name is Carol Ann Kauffman.  I’m an e-book author whose work is available on amazon.com for the kindle. My novels have been classified as romance, paranormal romance, fantasy, science fiction, supernatural, mature romance, and adventure.  I prefer to think of my work as stories of life, love, loss, and that bit of lunacy that tugs and pulls at out heartstrings, making sense out of nonsense, and vice versa.  They are stories of true love. 

     My first series, TIME AFTER TIME, follows a pair of quintessential lovers, Richard and Nicole, through their lives together, in different places, in different times, with different names, and sometimes on different planets.  This follows the alternative theory that the relationships we forge in this lifetime, both the good and the bad, are continued into the future, and are rooted in our past. Whatever we do, whomever we love, and the good and evil deeds we do today follow us into the future. Unsettled issues will present themselves again and again, until they are ultimately resolved. Those people who have had a profound effect on us in this lifetime will find us again in the future.

     Although the novels are numbered, they can be read in any order.  But if you begin with “BLUE LAKE, Book One,” I think you’ll get a better feel for the two main characters.

     I will be posting my new novella, “Charming Deception,” in one-page episodes twice a week here on VISION & VERSE.  It is a science fiction romantic adventure into the world of parallel worlds and body doubles.

Hello and welcome to VISION & VERSE.  I am Parker Kaufman, the VISION  side of this endeavor.  I am a visually challenged artist creating art cards and other works suitable for framing.  I work maily with card stock, patterned and textured papers, and pencil. 

I'm inspired by many different genres of art, music, and literature,  the world around me as I see it through impaired eyes, and  a truly wild imagination.  I believe my work defies categorization, so I won't try to put it into a nice neat boxed description.  Instead, I invite you to browse my website, www.parkerkaufman.net and experience it for yourself.

As is the goal of this blog, I hope to share with you readers, the myriad of things that have helped to grow and shape my creativity, to bring morsels of information to you, and words of inspiration with the hope of encouraging the growth of your creative self.

I hope that you will enjoy reading and discovering as much as I will enjoy sharing with you.

Our Mission Statement
The mission of "Vision and Verse" is to familiarize our readers with our work, to share with them the inspiration we have found in interesting artists and authors along the way, to inspire our readers to explore their own avenues of creativity, and to help them unlock their own creative abilities, and to see the beauty that surrounds them every day.