never say die

A few weeks ago, a door opened

and five good old dogs went through.

One of them was my dog Garrett's girlfriend, Sammy.

Here's the iPhone portrait I did of her.

    

He's not worried;

he's pretty sure they all went someplace good.

sketches

Some things happen in my sketchbook

that can't happen anywhere else.

It's full of big ideas.

Not every one will get out alive.

Two of my own dog's very best old dog friends

died within a couple of days of each other. 

It was a tough week for us all.

 I wondered if he knew... if he misses them.

Poor guy.

When I got home after saying goodbye and thanks 

to Jala's Jazzy,
I did the drawing at the top left (click twice).
I tried to do a 9x12 pastel from it,
but it was clear no painting could ever say it
better than this little thumbnail. 

Like I said,
not every one will get out alive.

wonderland

I admire Bob LaFond's pond paintings,

so I went out to Wonderland Lake

early one morning last week.

It was glorious.

little birds

I'll miss the hummingbirds. 

I'm afraid they're getting ready to leave. 

Though it didn't get below freezing this morning,

 it was cold enough to ice the dew. 

It was only 39 degrees when the dog and I walked at 6:30.

 Brave little hummers were at the feeder when we got back, 

so I filled it with a fresh batch of sugar water, 

hoping it will entice them to stay a little longer. 

Tomorrow, September 23rd, is the Fall Equinox, 

and the chickadees are already down from the mountains.

photo credit: talljim@growsonyou.com

credit

Credit where it's due...
Lately, my photographs have been taken with my iPhone 4. The app I use is Camera+. So far, upgrades have been developed as soon as I can wish for them and continue to make my phone the camera of my dreams. My next wish is to be able to use it to take archival photos of my art. For all I know, it already can, and I just haven't figured out how to. Most likely. 

With the advent of digital cameras, I suspect everyone has a favorite these days. Formerly, I used my Sony DSLR exclusively, but the iPhone is always with me, and I don't have to change lenses. Well, to each her own. Amazing times we live in, eh? Now if we can just survive our own foolishness. Not likely. 

This is not a paid advertisement. They can't afford me. Heh.


P.S. I'm so smart, I thought I'd illustrate this post with a photo of my iPhone. Um... duh. Well, though this isn't the best shot of this sun-struck bush, what the heck, I'll post it instead.

divine

heaven

and earth

discombobulated

Contrary to the hollow echo, I'm still here.

  I've been back in Maine visiting my family.  

Two days into it, my sister had a stroke.  

She's okay now, but it was a reality check for us all.  

If lobster counts, we did a lot of self-medicating.  

The weather was as beautiful as only Maine 

can serve up in August.

 Then that bad girl, Irene, 

 delayed our flight back to Boulder.

  I'm being as stoic as us down-easterners are supposed to be 

when I say,

 it was a hell of a vacation. 

I found this large acrylic hanging 

in my dad's workshop in the basement.  

 I painted it in my parents' guest room the summer of 1969.  

The world was in upheaval.  

Five months later, I dropped out of college

 and moved to Colorado.  

   

As you can tell, breathing was important.  

Still is.