Hello, again.

Seems like the only time I am motivated to post anything is on Saturdays.  We have had a relatively uneventful week. Our state (Virginia) had a presidential primary Tuesday and even though there were only two candidates on the ballot, we definitely voted.  I can't complain if I haven't done my part, right?  Seems like the other candidates didn't get enough signatures to even get on the ballot. That might mean something in itself.

I worked on the little (6 x 9) watercolor of the deer and while it's not that great, I am posting it and another one because you have to start somewhere. Remember to click on the pictures for a closer view.

There are so many things that jump out at me as being "wrong", that I have to focus on the things that I like about this little painting. While I didn't realize that I was centering this tree in the painting, I really do like the shadow side of it and the way the ivy is climbing out of the picture.  I like that the animals do look somewhat like deer, even though the one in foreground looks like he has been cut in half and reassembled somewhat askew.  Oh right, I'm focusing on the positive...sorry.

Earlier in the month I did a painting of the same size (6 x 9) of a wintry scene of birds.  I followed along with the artist on Artist Network TV and even used the line drawing that was supplied, but the birds not only look like emus struggling to stay on a branch, the one on the left appears to be wearing a bird mask instead of having a bird face.   But I'm learning as I go...

This was a lesson in various techniques, and there was so much going on to begin with, that I'm not surprised I struggled some and really overworked several areas. I do have trouble remembering to keep the white of the paper white.  I still feel the need to paint every area on the paper.  Well, maybe that will just be my style.  I'm having fun and it keeps me off the street.

Sometimes the photos that you take aren't the best reference photos, so I'll let you decide if either one of these feel right to you.  If fact, I would love someone would paint their version, if they want or simply state your opinion of the photo.

Here is an closeup shot of my spring jonquils, I have other shots to choose from, if anyone is interested in seeing them, but a daffodil is a daffodil, isn't it?

The fall foliage on our street is always so vibrant that I'm thinking about doing something from this photo...

The dead tree next to the fence has been taken down, so I will probably omit that from the picture if I use this one as a reference.

To prove that sometimes I do have a domestic urge, here is a shot of my take on macaroni and tomatoes. 

I chose a mixture of ground chicken and super lean ground beef, which I browned in EVOO with seasonings and a bit of chopped onion and celery.  After browning and draining what little grease was there, I added one can of diced tomatoes, about one half can of filtered water and a handful of orzo pasta.  I let it simmer covered, about fifteen minutes.  I like a very soft pasta, so I can pretend I'm a kid again, eating beef-a-roni.  It turned out to be very tasty and gave me something warm to eat while the hubby noshed on his chilli.

I'm still working on a needlework project and a gal at the gym wants me to make a newborn owl hat for her friend, so I am planning on staying busy.  I'm thinking about abandoning my weight loss blog and periodically posting things of that nature here.  Blogging seems to be slowing down some and I'm never sure how much interest there is in hearing about my little life here in the burbs of the South.

In any event, I'm alive and kickin' and have my cataract consultation next week. Wish me luck on that. I'll keep you posted.  Take care and give everyone a big old hug and kiss and say it's from me.

Saturday Morning

Well, all is well here on the home front.  With tornadoes all around the country this week, we are blessed to have stayed safe.  The lights flickered once and there was rain with lightening and thunder and high winds, but we were tucked safely here on the hill in the Valley of the Star.  At night when it's stormy I draw the curtains and we watch television and eat yummy snacks, but during the daytime when the light is better, you just might find me painting.

This week I watched several videos on Artist TV Network for inspiration, and decided to get out my very neglected watercolors and try to get a handle on this medium.  I have great control when using acrylics, and I find them easy to work with.  I do use a great deal of water with them and get the transparency that I really like, but, for some reason I have never liked the looseness of the traditional watercolor technique.  Long story shorter, I decided to go in a more dry brush direction to have a bit more control.  I practiced on several things, but they look so juvenile.  I dug my heels in and reminded myself that not all things are easy when you first start them, so I watched more videos and got some books from the library and practiced some more. My results were about the same, so I thought that maybe I was trying too hard (I tend to do that sometimes) and needed to stop over-thinking things.  So, one day this week I watched a PBS artist doing an acrylic painting of a barn and I thought maybe that would be a good subject to work on, but in watercolors.  Now I'm not one to haul my supplies anywhere to paint, I have tried that and it's just not me.  BUT, if someone else wants to do that for my benefit and have a show about it, I figured it's OK if I continually hit the pause button on the remote and use his finished painting as my inspiration.  I did just that.  The end result is still not worthy of any art gallery, but it is recognizable as a structure.

I have a photograph that I took of deer grazing in our woods that I'm working on now and hopefully, that will be "postable".  It's often said to make a picture interesting, it's a good idea to include something living, so I go from making two stroke birds to attempting a painting with five deer in it.  I know, not really logical for the Vulcan that I am, but what the hey, I'm up for a little challenge.

On a sadder note, in my opinion, the world lost two very special men this week.  By now I'm sure you have all heard of the sudden death of Davy Jones, that Monkee that so many of us grew up with. I always liked him and had all their albums.  Didn't miss any of the shows, either.  He will be missed.

In hopes of not losing too many readers, I want to address the fact that my world (the one of the horrible Conservatives) lost a great friend this week also.  Andrew Breitbart, passed away suddenly, as well, Monday from an apparent heart attack. We had heard him speak on numerous occasions and the hubby and I are happy to say we got to meet him several times at functions we attended over the last several years.  He was one of those men, who was wildly passionate about his beliefs and fearless in his pursuit of making sure other folks were made aware of the things that he sincerely felt were true.  That fearlessness and the fact that he went "full speed ahead" all the time, may have been factors in his early demise.  He will be missed, but his work will certainly go on, in the form of his websites and his colleagues who have promised take up where he left off.

Here is a picture of my sweet hubby, Tim take on two different occasions with Andrew.  I took the bottom one when we attended an AFP convention in November, and I found Andrew to be a really nice guy. (In case you didn't know Andrew, he is the taller of the two).

Well, that's all for now.  I slept in this morning (it is Saturday, after all) so I need to hit the shower and get ready for what's left of the day.  Painting those deer will certainly be a part of it and trying to remember to answer my e-mails (Karin, I'm soooo sorry) and thinking about all the things I'm going to do when I get my cataracts removed will keep my mind occupied for the next few hours.

Have a great weekend and if you suffered in any of the storms that were so treacherous this week, my prayers are with you. Stay safe and hug your Bestie. You'll be glad you did.

Pink Snow

Well, after much snow that didn't stick and melted almost immediately, we did get enough of the white stuff to justify me staying in all day Sunday and working on my afghan.  When we went out Monday morning to hit the gym (notice the sweatband) the trees were heavy with snow, and the sunrise was making it's presence known...

The camera sometimes just cannot capture the real beauty of nature, but I kept trying.  Here is another shot of the sunrise coloring the snow pink...

The temperature increased rapidly and by the time we came back from the gym, the snow was almost completely melted in these trees.  It was a heavy snow that knocked out our cable for almost 24 hours.  Twenty four hours with out telephone and cablevision, gave me plenty of time to work on the afghan I have been crocheting for the past three weeks.  I finally put the finishing touches on it today and....

I am really pleased with the results.  I used a cherished heirloom afghan that Peri, my sister, made me way back when, as a pattern.  I was looking for a way to use up some of the yarns left over from the famous owl hats and what originally was going to be a stripped scarf quickly morphed into a small afghan or lap rug.  It measures about 42"x 36" plus fringe.  It is a simple double crochet with a chain between each stitch.  I did vary the pattern in several rows by doing a single crochet.  The yarn that makes the plaid was done by weaving a double strand of yarn in the traditional over/under method using the double crochet foundation as the base.  Simple.  I did wonder why hubby ask me point blank "are you going to finish that today?".  I thought, at first, that he was feeling neglected, but soon realized that was not the case.  When I finished it and held it up to show him how nice it was, he immediately said "please drape it over my shoulders".  So now it's Tim's afghan. Who knew?  I had no idea that he was literally waiting for me to finish this project because he wanted it for himself.  How sweet is that?

I am also working on a embroidery/applique piece that will most likely be a wall hanging, but it is evolving so quickly that who knows what might happen?  Sissy also sent me a box of mysteries, so I'm filling my days with crafts and reading and going to the gym.  Hubby is working in his recording studio learning a new digital mixing program, so we are warm and happy and staying out of trouble.  What more could you ask for at this stage of the game.

That's it for now. Stay happy and don't forget to be creative. Ciao.

Danger, Will Robinson....Danger...

I can't help but feel jittery when I hear the Emergency Alert System break into my television program.  I'm still breathing rapidly.  The Alert System just scared/alerted us to the fact that a snow storm is definite in our area starting around midnight, starting as rain (scarrrrry rain) and changing over to wet snow possibly causing significant (?) accumulation in some areas, tapering off Monday morning.

The local weather gals and guys have been getting us ready for snow since Wednesday.  Everyone should have had ample time to get in extra supplies.

We keep enough water and food in the house to keep us safe for several days (probably ten), we have candles and plenty of blankets if we lose power.  With all this being said, why do I still feel scared?  I think it must be the sound of that dang alert system taking over my television. That is unnerving.

Well, that's it for me for now. Off to make sure the hubby puts the car in the garage. I'll keep you posted. Stay safe and warm and don't go out if you don't need to.

It doesn't happen often...

But every now and then, a movie comes along that you are invested in. Totally committed to. That movie just may be The Artist.  If you are a lover of Silent Movies, I mean the "real deal" silent movies, from way back when...then you will be in awe. Hopefully you will be able to avoid spoilers until you see the film, but if not, it really wont matter.  It's that good.

I, for one, love a movie that I connect with emotionally and since I couldn't stop the tears (the good kind) from flowing even after the credits were done...I'd say it fits the bill.

If  you aren't a movie goer but still love this genre, (i.e. silent and awesome) bide your time and I'm sure it will be out on DVD soon.  This will translate beautifully to the small screen. I certainly plan on adding it to my library of movies.

Well, that's it for me for today.  Hopefully, I'll be back soon with some of the nifty projects that I'm working on.  Until then, enjoy the movie review.

Love ya!

A Picture, finally

Here I am trying to take a photo in the mirror.

Here is the close up....

I made these earrings of silver polymer (Premo) clay, conditioned and rolled on a 4 or 5 on the pasta machine.  Applied silver leaf (the kind in sheets that goes everywhere) and added some Pearl EX powders.  Looks just like metal, but oh, so light weight.

That's it for today, gots to go get my teefers cleaned. See ya later!

Just catching up...

Just a quick post to say that I'm still hanging around.  Too triflin' to make a decent post.  I keep myself busy making sure the house doesn't turn into an episode of Hoarders, while making lots of time to read, make jewelry or do needle crafts.

Since I don't have the gumption to take a picture of any of my current projects, here is a repeat of a watercolor still life that I did several years ago and then lost the painting. Sheesh, I need to get better at organization and stuff. Less time reading, ya think? Nah...

Speaking of reading, after months of putting it off, thinking that I had to have a special device to borrow an e-book from our local library...I finally figured our how to do it.  All I had to do was download a free  Adobe reader to my computer and I have access to lots of free books to read.  I was hesitant to get a Kindle because I'm so funny (funny peculiar, not funny Ha Ha) about what I like to read, that I didn't want to spend money on something that I wouldn't like.  Enter electronic borrowing. Not only can I borrow a book for up to 2 weeks, I can also download a preview of the book to see if I'll like it.  I don't know if you can do that on an electronic reader, but this is working for me.  This is probably old school by now, but hey....I'm old.

I hope everyone is having a good January. We haven't had any snow yet, and actually just a few days of below freezing temperatures.  I'm OK with that, it's just that when it's overcast and the sun doesn't shine I just feel so un-motivated.  I try to go to the gym five days a week, but this week I only did four days.  The hubby hurt his elbow several weeks ago doing something, he's not sure what and it seems that every time he goes to the gym, he ends up in discomfort for the next few days.

Anyhow, that's what's up with us.  I'm multi-tasking like crazy. Fitting in all my reading and artsy endeavors while I surf the web on sites like Pinterest (Pinterest is by invitation only, let me know and I'll hook you up) and StumbleUpon and still remembering to feed the hubs and myself along the way. 

So I'm off to plop myself into a chair, fix a cuppa and do some reading.  We'll talk soon, I promise.