Thank goodness I have taken so many photographs over the years, a few of which have ended up on the pages of my blogs, because if I had not, there would be nothing in my studio for visitors to see. The fact that I take pictures, especially of bugs, is my new claim to fame.
Back in Greenville, I had such a great time in my natural, un-poisoned back yard searching for tiny hopping, crawling and flying things. When I found an interesting subject, I would stealthily stalk it and silently snap away with my good pocket camera until I thought I had a decent shot. Sometimes I was hot and sweaty when I came in to download the pix and see them giant sized on the computer. For me, it was a way to study cycles in nature, to be awed by smallest visible creatures, and to see the Creator's beautiful designs.
In my little patio home here, the yard is taken care of by a big company that uses chemicals to kill weeds and insects. I feel sad when I see the truck come, because I know that just to make a pretty uniform look in the neighborhood, the ecosystem is being disrupted. There is a balance of nature, and there are seasons for living things, and I watched it play out in my old back yard. It works and has worked for thousands of years.
I have been reading about the decrease in Monarch butterflies that is due to the dwindling supply of milkweed, their main source of food. Too bad. Everything is connected. I am going to have to look elsewhere for bugs to photograph, because there are not many in my new backyard.
Saturday, February 28, 2015
Tuesday, February 17, 2015
Something to think about
My almost eighty-nine year old Aunt Margaret has osteoporosis and has lost about five inches in height due to the crumbling of her spine. Last year was difficult, but this year she has been back to her active, upbeat self, going to all the things she enjoys. I have wondered what may happen to her delicate bones if she had any kind of jolt. Well... last week she was riding with a friend, going to Music Club, when they were struck at an intersection by a driver who ignored his red light. Damage to Ann's car was massive with the entire front end destroyed. The women, who spun around in the car when it was hit, were uninjured. Their seat belts and the air deployed air bags kept them totally safe. Ann's husband, who must be a math guy, figured that another 3/100 or 3/1000 (I don't remember) of a second, and they would have been goners. Margaret did not even get a bruise. What a miracle!
Monday, February 16, 2015
A Quiz for Presidents Day
Which President said?
1. One with the law is a majority.
2. The guns and the bombs, the rockets and the warships are all symbols of human failure.
3. In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock.
4. May God save the country, for it is evident that the people will not.
5. The highest glory of the American Revolution was this: it connected in one indissoluble bond the principles of civil government with Christianity.
6. The goal to strive for is a poor government and a rich people.
7. A people that values its privileges over its principles soon loses both.
8. If you want to make enemies, try to change something.
9. Man is not free unless government is limited.
10. The president of the United States should strive to be always mindful of the fact that he serves his party best who serves his country best.
Answers:
1. Calvin Coolidge
2. Lyndon Johnson
3. Thomas Jefferson
4. Millard Fillmore
5. John Quincy Adams
6. Andrew Johnson
7. Dwight Eisenhower
8. Woodrow Wilson
9. Ronald Reagan
10. Rutherford B Hayes
1. One with the law is a majority.
2. The guns and the bombs, the rockets and the warships are all symbols of human failure.
3. In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock.
4. May God save the country, for it is evident that the people will not.
5. The highest glory of the American Revolution was this: it connected in one indissoluble bond the principles of civil government with Christianity.
6. The goal to strive for is a poor government and a rich people.
7. A people that values its privileges over its principles soon loses both.
8. If you want to make enemies, try to change something.
9. Man is not free unless government is limited.
10. The president of the United States should strive to be always mindful of the fact that he serves his party best who serves his country best.
Answers:
1. Calvin Coolidge
2. Lyndon Johnson
3. Thomas Jefferson
4. Millard Fillmore
5. John Quincy Adams
6. Andrew Johnson
7. Dwight Eisenhower
8. Woodrow Wilson
9. Ronald Reagan
10. Rutherford B Hayes
Saturday, February 14, 2015
#9: Alice
Such good neighbors I have at theArtWorks.
Alice who is next door will be the featured artist when we have our Fourth Friday February open house. I love her big colorful paintings done in a variety of mediums on various surfaces. She says she has so many art projects and ideas in her head that she doesn't know which to do next! She is also a writer, mostly romance novels, and has just published her first kindle book. As you can see, she has extended the walls in her studio high, maximizing her hanging space. When she comes to her studio, she always brings her mother. Dottie has her own space to paint and was the first to make a sale!
Alice who is next door will be the featured artist when we have our Fourth Friday February open house. I love her big colorful paintings done in a variety of mediums on various surfaces. She says she has so many art projects and ideas in her head that she doesn't know which to do next! She is also a writer, mostly romance novels, and has just published her first kindle book. As you can see, she has extended the walls in her studio high, maximizing her hanging space. When she comes to her studio, she always brings her mother. Dottie has her own space to paint and was the first to make a sale!
Thursday, February 12, 2015
some good lyrics
The Wilmington area has a K-Love radio station that I listen to often. One of my favorite frequently played songs is 10,000 Reasons by Matt Redmond. This is the second verse, and I think of it as a goal, a good way to go through the day.
"The sun comes up, it's a new day dawning
It's time to sing Your song again
Whatever may pass, and whatever lies before me
Let me be singing when the evening comes"
"The sun comes up, it's a new day dawning
It's time to sing Your song again
Whatever may pass, and whatever lies before me
Let me be singing when the evening comes"
Wednesday, February 11, 2015
Home is where my cat is.
My sweet Nora. What would I ever do without her.
No lazy sleeping-away-the-day cat, wherever I go in the house, she follows along. When I come back from being away, I can tell she has been waiting for me. When I was in pain with my pinched nerve, she lay near me as if she needed to comfort me. She knows I will take care of her, but her trust in me lies deeper, and I see it in many little ways.
Nora is fourteen now. I figure we are about the same age. A few weeks ago, I had to take her to the vet and then give her medication for about two weeks. Thankfully her UTI was treatable - though expensive. But she is worth it. I hope she has a few more years to be my BFF!
No lazy sleeping-away-the-day cat, wherever I go in the house, she follows along. When I come back from being away, I can tell she has been waiting for me. When I was in pain with my pinched nerve, she lay near me as if she needed to comfort me. She knows I will take care of her, but her trust in me lies deeper, and I see it in many little ways.
Nora is fourteen now. I figure we are about the same age. A few weeks ago, I had to take her to the vet and then give her medication for about two weeks. Thankfully her UTI was treatable - though expensive. But she is worth it. I hope she has a few more years to be my BFF!
Sunday, February 8, 2015
Friday, February 6, 2015
speaking of...
When Trip was here weekend before last, he brought several things to keep me busy.
The top picture shows the boxes he made that will hold the matted 5x7 photographs that I have in my studio. My job was to paint them. I think I will stay with natural for inside the boxes because the wood is smooth and pretty. The bottom picture is of garden stakes that he made for me to be creative with. (I see I left out the one that says Cukesville, for the area of a garden where the cucumbers grow.) He also made me seven stretcher frames and then stretched canvas around the edges. He quickly learned how to do it right. My job was first to gesso them and then paint pictures on them. I used the first one today in my oil painting class. It was much nicer to paint on than the store bought variety. Thanks, Bub!
The top picture shows the boxes he made that will hold the matted 5x7 photographs that I have in my studio. My job was to paint them. I think I will stay with natural for inside the boxes because the wood is smooth and pretty. The bottom picture is of garden stakes that he made for me to be creative with. (I see I left out the one that says Cukesville, for the area of a garden where the cucumbers grow.) He also made me seven stretcher frames and then stretched canvas around the edges. He quickly learned how to do it right. My job was first to gesso them and then paint pictures on them. I used the first one today in my oil painting class. It was much nicer to paint on than the store bought variety. Thanks, Bub!
Thursday, February 5, 2015
Something Teddy Said
When Trip and I were talking last night, I was reminded of this wonderful quote from Theodore Roosevelt, our bold, adventurous twenty-sixth president.
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)