Apr30Art

Sad day for us today... lost another of our much loved little dogs... Unfortunately, all our dogs are getting very old... I feel lucky to have had them for so long.... but still it leaves a hole in your heart.

Stonewall Jackson - Stoney Feb, 1999 - April, 2013

Stoney

THE BEST PLACE TO BURY A DOG

"There is one best place to bury a dog.
"If you bury him in this spot, he will
come to you when you call - come to you
over the grim, dim frontier of death,
and down the well-remembered path,
and to your side again.

"And though you call a dozen living
dogs to heel, they shall not growl at
him, nor resent his coming,
for he belongs there.

"People may scoff at you, who see
no lightest blade of grass bent by his
footfall, who hear no whimper, people
who may never really have had a dog.
Smile at them, for you shall know
something that is hidden from them,
and which is well worth the knowing.

"The one best place to bury a good
dog is in the heart of his master."

--- Ben Hur Lampman ---

Apr29Art

Rainy morning, stayed gray all day and thunder storms and all evening...  I hate driving in the rain... so the drive to and from Columbia today was nerve wracking for me.
A local watercolor artist here in Charleston (Helen Beacham) has been giving watercolor tips every day in April.  She is a wonderful teacher and a very accomplished artist...so if you want some tips on watercolor check out her April blog entries helenkbeacham.blogspot.com/2013/04/tippette-1-bricks-ston...  .

Apr28Art

I LOVE Quentin Blake's drawings... I kinda copied these birds from a screen saver he has on his website to download for free.  There are great videos on there too, very interesting to see him draw and paint.  Amazing set up he has for his watercolors, looks like a very large board with full size pans glued to it, with the color name labeled beside the pans of color.  He uses little strips of watercolor paper to check his mixes... and keeps his water in a coffee mug.

Apr27Art

Worked in the yard this morning, Ron mowed the lawn, I did the weed whacker and bathed one of the dogs. It was a gray and rainy morning, but cleared up and turned into a beautiful day.

Apr26Art

George Jones... stopped loving her today.... I still love that song.  Rest in Peace George.
I was going to draw a Palmetto tree and at the last minute drew a tall skinny pine tree.

Apr25Art

I saw this yummy looking recipe on the internet... and for some reason I've been craving strawberries... so I may have to try this one. zoomyummy.com/2012/06/03/cheesecake-stuffed-strawberries/

Apr24Art

Painful getting the IV seated for the contrast... I have terrible veins in my arms so the only good veins are in my hands.  Blood work earlier this week... blew out the veins on my left hand... so they used my right hand.  Not complaining... been a life long issue for me.
I got my first MRI in the late 70s... the machines have changed a lot, they are quieter, more open, and the whole process seems to take less time these days.

Apr23Art

The new roses are called 'amber' in color, kind of a yellowy orange color... lots of buds and now four flowers in full bloom.
Still haven't planted the pink ones yet... maybe tomorrow.

Apr22Art

Two hundred mile commute today, not the way most people celebrate Earth Day.
Blind contours... always fun... and results always wonky... have to label them so that people will know what it was.
The roses I transplanted on Saturday bloomed today... I really like these I hope they do well.

Apr21Art

Sunday... getting ready for the week ahead.  Lots going on this week... Ron goes on day shift tomorrow so has to be at work at 5am... then Tuesday he's back to night shift for two weeks, then day shift.
For me I drive to Columbia SC tomorrow attend face to face meetings... then the rest of the week work from home... and sometime this week I'll head over to Mt. Pleasant for another round of MRIs...

Apr20Art

I have some fake snakes in my flower beds.. one of them scared a door to door salesman today... good snake LOL.
Worked in the yard today, planting more flowers and some new rose bushes.  Off the dinner with friends tonight.

Apr19Art

One bomber dead last night the other in custody tonight.  Well done Boston PD, FBI and everyone involved.
No monsters roam the streets tonight... only the monsters in your head remain... send them to bed with no supper.

Apr18Art

This page was painted last night with Daniel Smith's Cobalt Teal... a wet wash that challenged this 90 lbs paper I'm afraid.  Painting over the blue was interesting, I thought about getting out my gouache but lazy took over and I pressed on with my regular watercolor.  Drawing on the pre painted paper had an odd feel to it, and it seemed to make the ink pen skip and not lay down a nice line like it does on un-painted paper.
It was an interesting exercise, not sure its a technique i'll be using much... set in my ways already YIKES!