Goodbye Ringling.

Watercolour.  11x14.

details...

I'm realizing that I've painted several other "goodbye ringling" elephants.

So that means its official.  Its a series.

Eventually...Everything Connects-to the Trees.

This is an encaustic painting on wood, 6x12 inches.

details...

The best thing about this painting is that I was able to complete it in one afternoon, always a challenge (for ME at least).  But I did it, I thought it through, sat down and started in, and I kept the notion in my mind that I was going to finish it in one sitting.

It helped immensely that it is only 6x12 inches.  With encaustic, there's so many layers, adding and scraping back.  So I kept it small and I kept it simple.  If I remember right, it has 9 or 10 layers???  Completely do-able in one afternoon. This is a real learning experience for me, I CAN do it, a painting a day.

Watercolor Quilt Blocks and Vegas Showgirl Feathers.

Every other year a wonderful quilt show comes to town.  Its at the Dairy Barn and its called Quilt National.  The quilts are fantastic.

So, I'm getting in the mood.  I'm painting watercolour quilt block patterns.  I've been working on them while meditating with Oprah and Deepak, my pals.

We're setting up for a little quilt show of our own at Starbrick Gallery.  Its called "Mini Quilts.  Many Mediums." and so far has interpretations of quilts in ceramic, paper, watercolor, and fabrics.
Once its all set up I'll post pictures...probably next week.




This guy was on the door that the Hot Lunch Ladies use to get in the cafeteria. I had to take his picture because of those plumes.  Just look at them. Aren't they perfect?  They're like perfect feathers better than a Vegas Showgirl wears.

And these, I thought this was a Christmas Cactus.

Same with this one.  But they're blooming in April.  Hey, didn't they do that last year too?  I bet if I look back through this here handy blog I'll find the answer to that puzzle.

Maybe they make Christmas Cactus now for every holiday!  Wouldn't THAT be something?

Serious Spring.

Today was some serious spring.  The leaves on the trees are doing it.  And there's springy decorations everywhere.

I'm kind of in love with these flowers.  I think there was some crocheting and some starching involved in this d.i.y.

And these.

Every time I see pussy willows I immediately become a young girl again back on our farm.  There was a pussy willow bush in the side yard.  It intrigued me.

We baked a gazillion cookies.  Bunnies.  Eggs.  And those carrots!

The decorating was such fun.  There was a group of us and everybody's creations were different.  I declared "no rules!" at the get-go.

This was happening back home.   The kitten was stuck in the tree.  It was her first tree experience and I wish there was audio with this photo.  She's a talker.

Thank goodness she has a strapping young teenager who loves her dearly.  He climbed up the huge ladder and rescued her.  (I'm actually glad I was decorating a gazillion cookies and didn't see this rescue mission).


It was overwhelming and exhausting.

5 hours later, and I'm not even kidding.                  Happy Easter peeps.

More Daytrippin'.

More daytripping around Athens County, actually over to Vinton County.  This is the view from Lookout Rock.  You could see so far.  I was too high.  Waaaay too high.


These pictures don't show the depth perception but it was a sheer cliff.  If you've never been up there, go!  Wait, don't go, its waaaay too high.

Raccoon Creek was running strong and green.

The graffiti inside the tunnel was fabulous, such luscious colors.

This is looking out the other side of the tunnel.

More luscious street art in the middle of nowhere.

oonville.

Why not?  My interpretation of this graffiti is warning the college students not to jump off the train tressel.  There used to be a downed tree and a refrigerator in the water so you had to jump in the middle, carefully.
It sounds so crazy but people did it all the time and lived to tell about it.

The refrigerator seems to have been removed.

Or maybe it floated away to the next county.

There was a zombie in there.