My Normal Day

The usual routine for this artist begins at 5:30 and looks like this.

Fix breakfast and pack lunch for husband. Grab a sip of my coffee which I made while feeding the dog and five cats. Oh, also put in eye drops and take Lupus meds. Next, push husband out the door and finally get to sit by my fishpond with a cup of coffee for 10 minutes. Run and take a shower, dress for the day, turn on computer and download a bazillion e-mails. Read and answer the really immediate e-mails with my second cup of coffee. Now, because my fruit tree was abundant this year and the husband picked way too many pears....peel and slice and process 5 pints of pear preserves. Now try to squeeze in two hours of painting on the little 2 x 3 inch miniature of George Washington. I used a googled image of George to work from. The whole mini took five hours stretched out over a four day period.

Back into the kitchen to peel, slice and process more pears. While pears were in the canner, I took a small pumpkin from my garden and made a fabulous crock pot pumpkin bisque for our dinner tonight. OK, done with the pears and dinner is on the table....Brett announces that I should can some more pears, since he is going to spend the evening mowing our four acres.

HELP!!! After peeling, slicing and processing three more quarts of pears, my wrists were screaming and I headed to the sofa with a big glass of wine. I fell into bed at 10:00.

Thats my typical day when I don't go to the gallery. On those days my gallery is open, I am out the door at 9:00 am and in heaven at the easel by 10:30. I actually get to paint all day and come home to an easy meal made by the husband or myself at 6:30. We watch some tv after dinner or answer e-mails before bed at 10:00.

More Venus

I have progressed a bit and you can see that I am placing the lights on the arms. I also wanted to establish the white dress with what I had squeezed out onto the palette for the day. Rather than waste it, I slapped it onto the canvas and used it to start getting a better idea of the body, since I am not using the previous body of the previous model.

My well meaning husband picked two bushel baskets of pears from our tree, thinking he was doing me a service by getting the fruit before the bear, crows and deer did. Guess how many quart jars of pears that will end up being? No way on earth I am doing all that fruit. I have already made 6 pints of preserves and three quarts of pears in syrup, and that was only one sixth of a basket. Oh my poor arthritic wrists!

The New Venus

This is my new Venus model. She works at the Inn and lives very close to my studio in Washington. Originally, I asked her to pose for simply a head study. During a conversation I mentioned I needed someone for a Medusa portrait and she jumped at the opportunity to pose for my Gods and Goddesses series. On the first day that she came in for photographs and sketching, it became abundantly apparent that she was no Medusa and I felt Venus more closely suited her personality. I have the initial face blocked in on top of the previous model's body and background. Notice that the new head is larger than the previous model. I fully intend to redo the body in a larger matching size from the new model also.

This young lady has eyes that just draw you in and her upward gaze also makes me think she would be an excellent irgin Mary or some other religious person....maybe an angel.

Orlean Fire Dept. Sign

We have some guys out here in the Free State with a real sense of humor. The fire department at Orlean is just 5 miles from my home. I don't usually drive this way, but I pass by to and from the gallery if I take the scenic route. This was their safety message yesterday evening. A few weeks back I passed by and the sign said, Drive Carefully Watch for Bears, or so I thought. I did not have my camera and when I went back by two days later with my camera, the sign said Watch for Bikes. Well, Bikes are no big deal out here. We have regular routes the hard core bikers in training use all the time as well as the guys who do the crotch rocket runs. It can get a bit annoying following bikers who refuse to share the road, ride four abreast and then are stupid enough to wave you around them on a blind curve or double yellow line. Both of which are dangerous and illegal. The crotch rockets are the guys who will pass me on a double yellow or on a blind curve and I cringe at what I might see happen to them. Oh well, you can't legislate good sense.

If you are in the area, be sure to check out the Orlean Fire Dept. sign. I can't wait to see what the next message will be.

More Saint Alice

I got some more time in working on Saint Alice. I have added the little hummingbirds holding her halo. I actually took a picture two days ago, of 7 hummingbirds all at my feeder at the same time. Four were sitting and feeding and three were hovering a few inches away. I mailed a copy of the picture to my Aunt Judy who took the goldfinch pictures for me last year.

I also have blocked in Timmy the cat.

I now must tackle the dress and I hate to admit it, but I hate painting drapery. Cloth befuddles me. I just can't make convincing folds. But there was a time, I could not paint hands. So I am going to spend this winter focusing on drapery at least three mornings a week until I can paint the most exquisite cloth ever seen.

Michael J. Fox visited Lil Washington

Last Thursday, Actor, Michael J. Fox visited Little Washington. Guess who is not open on Thursdays?

I have decided to start opening on Thursday afternoons when I can. This is the second actor to visit town when I was not open.

Barney is back

Barney paid us another visit and this time he tore down our bluebird nestbox which was on a 4x4 pressure treated post. He was after whatever was in the box...ants or mice, since the bluebirds were not there anymore. The box is a total loss. Still no pictures of Barney.

Saint Alice Progress

Yesterday, I resumed work on Saint Alice along with other projects in the works. I finished up the Great Falls commission and it is being framed now. I hope to work on Saint Alice some more today.

No bears this morning and I actually had my camera ready.