Bailey’s Response

Hey, I am not fat ... I’m just a little extra fluffy for the cold weather.

Um ... is that a donut you’re eating?

Webbing vs. Painting

Every Blessing WORK IN PROGRESS
30 x 40 inches • oil on deep cradled Gessobord


Yesterday I spend about half my work time updating my website, and half my time painting.

I prefer painting.

Here’s Bailey keeping me company as I paint into the night. Well, as I paint into 7 p.m. or so. I don’t really like painting by artificial light, but since the sun goes down early on these winter days, I got these daylight spectrum bulbs for the light fixture in my studio, and they seem to work really well. By that I mean that the colors in the painting by this light looked almost exactly like they looked in the daylight when I walked in this morning, as you can see by comparing the photo below with the photo above, taken this morning.


I shouldn’t be talking, but it looks to me like Bailey needs to spend a little less time napping in the studio, and a little more time on the playground.

The glass is always half full

A cheerful heart is good medicine,
but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.

PROVERBS 17: 22

No, no, don’t get excited ... this is a photo of the south pasture after last year’s big snow.

We were so looking forward to waking up to a snowy winter wonderland yesterday morning, but no. Nada. Zip.

Just this:


Not bad, but not snow.

But there’s always a bright side. Even though we couldn’t go out and make snow angels like we were planning, we were able to get to town for some much needed groceries.

So now, with a little space heater under my desk to keep my feet warm, a pantry full of provision, and the dog and cat food bins full of dog and cat food, I’ve been spending yesterday and today doing some updating to my website. I should be able to finish that up tomorrow and publish the new pages, then back to the easel in earnest.

Good night, all!

Horseplay

Here in Shreveport we say that if you don’t like the winter weather, just wait ten minutes.

It’s been raining all day today. All day.

Freezing, messy, icy rain.

All.

Day.

It’s supposed to snow starting sometime in the middle of the night. But right now it’s still just icy, sleety, messy rain.

Yesterday, however, was just beautiful. Very spring-like. Farmer Mike’s horses were out in our pasture in the morning so I decided it would be a good time to get some good horse photos. We let Farmer Mike use our pasture for his horses and cows, and he maintains it for us and pays us a little rent. Good for him, good for us.

Fun for me because I can go walking with the horses now and then.

Hey, I wonder if she brought any snacks today?

Let’s go see!

You wouldn’t happen to have a carrot in your pocket, would you?

Or some apple slices, maybe?

WELL?

Sorry, fellas, not today.

Fine! We’re outta here!

While this guy was busy scratching his nose on the fence,

I slipped through the barbed wire and headed off after the others.

I noticed he was following me, so I offered him a doggy treat I found in the pocket of my jacket.

But he wasn’t interested.

After a while everybody ignored me and I just walked around taking pictures.

I noticed that some of my equine buddies liked dining alone ...

... and some liked to eat with friends.

After a bit, I sensed I was being approached.

Hey, here’s a little advice ...

if you want to get some really good shots, next time ...

... BRING SNACKS!

Surrounded by Inspiration

Every Blessing work in progress
30 x 40 inches • oil on Gessobord


This morning when I let the dogs out after breakfast, I walked out into the yard to see if I could find any new daffodil leaves poking their way up through the grass. After roaming around the yard for a bit, I climbed up on the back yard fence to look over into the pasture, and spotted a bit of white peeking through some tangled grasses ... the first paperwhites!

Late this afternoon I took a break to walk out there and take some photos of these early blooms.

Here’s a glance back at the house and our seven-foot high back yard fence. It looks so small compared with the sweeping landscape of the pasture.



What a beautiful time of day, right before the winter sunset when the light is tinged with gold. I’m truly blessed to be surrounded by such inspiration!

Happy New Year!

I know the New Year doesn’t officially begin for six more days, but when I opened my new calendar for 2011, I saw that the first page actually starts with ...


... TODAY!

So I decided that, since putting things off is one of the things I’m resolving to stop doing this year, I might as well think of today as the first day of the new year, and go ahead and get started not putting things off.

Also, appropriately, this is Boxing Day (also St. Stephen’s Day) in the UK, Canada, Australia, and a few other countries around the world.
I say “appropriately” because, as I found out when I googled
“Boxing Day” (remember when we had to go to the library to
look things up?), it’s a day of expressing gratitude for our blessings
through generosity to those less fortunate, and is celebrated by being other-centered rather than self-centered; and THAT ties into another of my resolutions for this year: to be more aware of and responsive to others than to my own self.

And that’s all I’m saying about New Year resolutions.
Because, as Elizabeth McCrindle wrote a post or two ago on her blog, this year is going to be less about saying and more about doing.
Hear, hear, Elizabeth!

I would also like to echo her thanks to her blog followers; thank you all for your lovely comment here and on my paintings blogs!
I’m sure a lot of us blogging artists would agree with the way Elizabeth so aptly puts it:

Sometimes it can feel like it's just me and the easel
and then I come here and find that someone's been
looking over my shoulder.

It’s so encouraging to find out someone out there is really interested in
your journey ...

Happy New Year, everyone!

And happy painting!

A Blessed Christmas to All!

The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

- JOHN 1: 9-14