SamArtDog

cello

2012-02-12T16:01:00.004-07:00

Nancy Colella's new puppy is yellow.

So of course, her name's Limoncello.

It's a cute name for a dog,

More Italian than nog,

And for short, they can just call her Cello.

painted rocks

2012-02-10T12:02:00.000-07:00

I've been known to paint rocks.

Not paintings of rocks.

Rocks.

almost home

2012-02-05T19:53:00.001-07:00

Tomorrow is Monday,

and it'll be time to get back for real.

But here's a couple of parting shots

of the unreal that is Hawaii.

hot n cold

2012-02-04T16:44:00.000-07:00

Climate shock.

When we left Honolulu yesterday,

Hawaii was, well, Hawaii.

Beautiful, benign and balmy.

By the time the plane landed,

Denver was buried by the biggest February snow in history.

First you play, and then you pay.

Mother Nature is a twisted sister.

beach biscuits

2012-02-02T02:49:00.001-07:00

Hawaii is a place where women are lovely and loved. Wahines' impossibly firm and perky bums are affectionately called beach biscuits. Cheerfully emblazoned beach towels offer protection and comfort and men proudly proclaim their undying respect. It's another planet.

We fly home tomorrow night. When I went to the point for one more sunset tonight, I was reminded that there are lovely dogs waiting for us there. I found a tennis ball floating in the surf and will take it home for them.

P.S. Just heard it'll be snowing. Yikes.

kahuna

2012-01-31T19:20:00.003-07:00

The day began with another rainbow. We've been on the beach all day watching the Pro being run in nearly perfect conditions. The big swell washed waves all the way up the beach to the house all last night and then became a day of pretty, glassy pipes. Amazing surfing. Five perfect 10.0s in a single day. Guys held together with stitches and duct tape, but giggling like schoolgirls and totally stoked. For sure, this is an event that'll be talked about for years. And tomorrow's yet another day.

Be sure to check out
<< paintingperceptions.com >>
(sorry I can't link it for you).
Niel Plotkin's interview with Alex Kanevsky is not be missed. In my estimation, Kanevsky is a kahuna.

swell

2012-01-30T19:13:00.002-07:00

The offshore buoy, as in offshore the Aleutian Islands (it's a big ocean out there, folks, but to a big wave it's right next door), forecast a monster swell for today. It was right, and the swell arrived this morning with 30+ ft waves. A "lei" day was called. Way too big to run a safe (oxymoron) Pipeline Pro competition, but not too big for some good ol' fun for surf rats.

The photo shows a 6 ft surfer dropping into a, what would you say--30 ft wave? Then the wave explodes as it pile-drives him into the reef a foot below the surface. Woohoo...what fun!

Should anyone live long enough to collect the loot, the PipePro prize is $130,000. I know I promised no rainbows, but the end of a bigass one is right out there, fellas.

whoops

2012-01-30T10:13:00.002-07:00

Yeah, it's great being able to post from the iPhone, but now it's also possible to
BUTT POST!

pipeline

2012-01-30T10:09:00.001-07:00

We lucked out (I hope) This is Day3 of the Volcom Pipeline Pro. We got a superb camera position yesterday. We're heading back a mile down-beach to to the Banzai to see if the surf is too big to run heats today. Stay tuned...

strange

2012-01-30T01:22:00.002-07:00

Everything from a mountainside to a grain of sand is strange here.

wildlife

2012-01-29T16:32:00.003-07:00

Wee geckos everywhere.
Cute, quick and tiny.

Contrasted by these not-so-tiny football players here to play in Sunday's Pro-Bowl in Honolulu.
Cute, quick and huge.

(Their wimmins weren't about to not be in any picture of these boys.)

big wave tango

2012-01-25T16:41:00.002-07:00

The trades have been in irons for the last three days. Hot and humid and still. Last night, storms finally broke them free and the surf began thundering in again. The 30 ft. waves are big enough to shake the house.

Oh yes. This is what we love. The camera and the paint are all set up. Ready o roll. The camera jockey is happy shooting world-class surf jockeys. And painting is a pure pleasure. Problem is, I can't ignore the combination of the surfers out there and the tango playing in my head long enough to paint more than this quick sketch.

Then there's the issue of so many shrimp, so little time...

p.s. Note to self: head should not look like coconut.

local fauna

2012-01-24T03:29:00.001-07:00

I promised no palm trees, so here's the local fauna report...

First spotting was Sluggo's head in the seat ahead of me. Yikes.

No matter the destination, whenever I have to leave my homedog behind, I sorely miss him. To me, dogs are always as important as anything else. Anyone who knows me knows this is just who I am. So whenever I'm separated from my better half, my canine appendage, my tail if you will, I tend to lose my place and/or my mind and become so distracted by even the sight of a dog that I drift off.

A few sightings yesterday made me realize that I may have a deeper condition than just abject doglove. Seems I have a limit for seeing nothing but humans for too long. The occasional company of any animal does a thing for my oxytocin levels which I can't deny.

I went to down the beach to Sunset Point last night to watch the you-know-what set and was thrilled to run into a familiar dog. She's sort of the official beach-greeter-bitch and is there every evening. An equal-opportunity friend, she seems to know that some people just need to get them some doglove. She always makes me feel good.

When I got back to the house, I was greeted by a little feral cat. We haven't seen our last feral, Fortitude, for a couple of years and miss him every time we come back here. This sweet thing was like a messenger and stayed long enough to meow and yeowl and rub against my ankles 'til they sparked and then was off down the beach.

Then, this morning, I saw my first holy-moly mongoose. Considering their local history, he did nothing for my oxytocin, but I did take note and a picture. It's like a Hawaiian raccoon. Garrett would know just what to do...

no palm trees

2012-01-20T15:26:00.001-07:00

Why make pictures of

the ubiquitous palm tree,

the repetitive rainbow,

when oddities of nature like these abound?

I'm not saying I'll be able to resist

the occasional stray weather phenom,

and animals like these are certainly always fair game.

Hawaii starts tomorrow.

We'll see how I do.

the golden hour

2012-01-16T17:56:00.001-07:00

In the golden hour

everything becomes beautiful.

Even...

no... most especially, the baler.

tropic topic

2012-01-13T23:53:00.001-07:00

I'm signing up for a Google app which will make it possible to post on samartdog from my iPhone. Could be useful when we're in Hawaii. Or anywhere! We'll see...

3-legged landscape

2012-01-12T16:50:00.004-07:00

Last week, I paraphrased Wolf Kahn:

"Paint a landscape because
no one will say you're crazy if you put three legs on it."

Here's my 3-legged landscape.

Boulder at dawn.

I also took a cue from Celeste Bergin
and worked over an old canvas,
a painting of 3-legged dog.
It seemed appropriate.

snowman

2012-01-11T14:41:00.000-07:00

Four pretty inches of fresh snow today!

Not enough to build a snowman

but enough to paint one.

waiting

2012-01-06T18:45:00.000-07:00

While you're waiting for me to post another painting,

I've been painting it.

I've been taking Wolf Kahn's advice;

paint a landscape because
no one will say you're crazy if you put three legs on it.

Needless to say, I'm paraphrasing,
but not by much; it's close to a quote.
He also says painting landscape gives us permission
to be free, to make a mess.
I'm taking him at his word.

I've also been waiting, waiting to go back to Hawaii.
In two weeks.
Yahoo!
Here's an iPhone daydream.

braggadocio

2012-01-04T16:18:00.002-07:00

What a way to start the new year!
The Liebster Blog Award has been given to
samartdog by Reform School Art.

Liebster is a German word that translates as
favorite or dearest.

The award originated in Germany

and is intended to recognize up and coming bloggers.

Those distinguished by this award have
fewer than 200 followers.

In keeping with its pay-it-forward tradition,

I have nominated the following ~~five~~ six blogs for the award:

Art and Music
ByeByePie
Arting Around In SoVa
Maine-ly Painting

Brian Eppley Paintings
Sippican Cottage

Frankly, I have mixed feelings about this award.
I'm truly thankful that Patricia Kessler nominated me
and especially to have been chosen by a blog called
Reform School Art.
(I just heard some of my former teachers roll over.)
But seriously, how cool is that?!
Well, it's as cool as being defined as favorite or dearest.
And to be called up and coming at my age?
I'll take it!
Then we get to
fewer than 200 followers.
Uh-oh.
You should know that sometimes

I have a hard time with the rules.

Some of my favorite blogs rack up huge numbers.
Hundreds. Even thousands. Yikes.
Small wonder, given how long they've been at this,
how world-class their art and/or blogs are,
or how prolific they are.

Then there are the rest of us.
We just might be too
busy,
lazy,
shy,
elitist
or celibate
to have enough followers to populate small towns.
Good news! We either make money doing what we love,
or we qualify for The Liebster!
Life is good.

seeing eye dog

2012-01-01T14:32:00.005-07:00

Look me in the eye.

Wait...

I have been professionally accused of being indirect.

Understatement.

This post is a sterling example; let me explain.

With a wild swing from obscurity to brick-upside-the-head,
this is a blind dog.

No doubt it would have worked better
if I had just said that to begin with.
"But what kind of art needs a written explanation?",
I asked myself.
(My apologies to any and all who tried to figure this out.
All three of you.)

endless

2011-12-29T08:50:00.000-07:00

Back to the east pasture.

I find this place to be endlessly

fascinating?...

beautiful?...

endless?...

This picture keeps catching my eye.

Props to my iPhone camera;

It continues to amaze me.

O Holy Dog

2011-12-23T14:38:00.002-07:00

timing is everything

2011-12-22T15:08:00.000-07:00

First day of Winter,

and right on time...

Two feet of it!

Seriously, folks... what's not to love?

winter life

2011-12-21T15:09:00.005-07:00

At this time of year,

when the days are cold and short

and the shadows are long,

the ranch quietly sustains its own way of life.

Wildlife silently crosses the land.

The horses live in their own society.

And while some cows are dying,
others are calving.

In the presence of Winter,

life goes on.

dream dog

2011-12-15T17:06:00.005-07:00

A dog's midwinter's night dream.

canal dog

2011-12-11T17:31:00.001-07:00

Yeah, I'll wait here for you.

But I sure ain't pullin' your boat.

up from the pasture

2011-12-09T13:21:00.004-07:00

Again, not a good photo, but I'm out of time.

And patience.

Resolution: fix camera setup.

the devil's footprint

2011-12-07T17:51:00.009-07:00

Recently, the dog and I were walking along the river

late one afternoon in a remote area of the ranch.

Dusk was quickly falling,

and I knew we'd better head back down the canyon.

As we turned to go home,

something on the ground caught my eye.

Tracks.

Animal tracks, I thought.

I leaned over to look closely and took some pictures.

These were like no tracks I had ever seen before.

Not cow.

Nor deer, nor elk.

Not even mountain goat.

They gave me the creeps,

and we high-tailed it back home.

I can't find anything on Google,

and until someone can tell me otherwise,

they look like the devil's footprint.

brrrrr

2011-12-05T14:57:00.001-07:00

It's cold enough to turn you to stone.

MY ball

2011-12-01T13:09:00.002-07:00

100 things

2011-11-23T17:00:00.004-07:00

100 things
I love about art:

1 CHOICE

2 COLOR

3 MUSIC

4 BRUSHSTROKES

5 MATISSE

6 RHYTHM

7 COURAGE

8 SOLITUDE

9 LIGHT

10 CONTRAST

11 PASTELS

12 WOLF KAHN

13 BLACK

14 MEMORIES

15 QUIRKS

16 INTUITION

17 LINE

18 DESIGN

19 SERENDIPITY

20 ANYSCAPE

21 SHADOW

22 ABSTRACTION

23 CLOUDS

24 GESTURE

25 ROCKS

26 DAVID HOCKNEY

27 INSANITY

28 CREATION

29 ERASERS

30 LAND ART

31 PERSPECTIVE

32 SHAPES

33 MUSEUMS

34 METAPHORS

35 OUTSIDER ART

36 TURRELL'S CRATER

37 IMAGINATION

38 SWEET SPOTS

39 COLOR WHEELS

40 ACCIDENTS

41 ART BLOGS

42 ARTISTS

43 SAMARTDOG

44 HUMOR

45 COSTUMES

46 SPECTRUM

47 DOGS

48 ORANGE

49 BLUE-VIOLET

50 LOADED BRUSHES

51 BRILLIANCE

52 DREAMS

53 TIMELESSNESS

54 THE RIGHT IDEA

55 STUDIOS

56 MARK ROTHKO

57 TURQUOISE

58 TREES

59 PASSION

60 MARK LEACH

61 LOOKING

62 BLANK CANVAS

63 WEATHER

64 ART CATALOGS

65 PEACE

66 ART HISTORY

67 VIEWS

68 STORYTELLING

69 CHIAROSCURO

70 COMPOSITION

71 NEW CRAYONS

72 DISCOVERY

73 PHOTOS

74 PENCILS

75 ATMOSPHERE

76 EMILY CARR

77 COLLECTING

78 CAPTURE

79 VAN GOGH

80 NEW MEXICO

81 PATINA

82 GEHRY’S BILBAO

83 CHRISTO

84 POLLOCK iPHONE APP

85 FINDS ARTISTS

86 SHRINES

87 LOVE

88 COMPLEMENTS

89 VIBRATION

90 MIXING COLOR

91 INK

92 SUGGESTION

93 INDEPENDENCE

94 LEARNING

95 LOST EDGES

96 GAUGUIN

97 LOCAL LIGHT

98 PAINT

99 POSSIBILITIES

100 CHANGING MY MIND

I'm thankful for all of these things.

What's your 100?

more good news

2011-11-21T12:40:00.001-07:00

Hey!

Did ya hear the good news?

Pizza is a vegetable!

sunflower

2011-11-19T15:37:00.002-07:00

What if Van Gogh had had an app?

long live the king

2011-11-17T13:36:00.005-07:00

King Alexander

will never let petty bureaucrats get him down.

He's rebuilding his garden.

It's now bordered by a spiffy new sidewalk.

Long live the king.

dog on wheels

2011-11-15T16:29:00.000-07:00

I took this little guy off of the window sill in the studio,

painted his portrait, took a bad picture of it

and posted it.

So there you have it.

just cuz

2011-11-13T18:06:00.001-07:00

Here's a cheerful little so-and-so.

Just cuz.

nothing is forever

2011-11-11T22:41:00.000-07:00

On October 24th, I posted a story about

Alexander's Garden.

Meanwhile, the City of Boulder has been

on a mission to rebuild all its sidewalks.

Hellbent, you might say.

On our walk early yesterday morning,

the dog and I headed over to see

if the crews had gotten to Alexander's house yet.

They had.

Garrett's nose points to what's left of that magic little garden.

The sign below was hung on the fence
in front of the house.

The display of rocks and shells and treasures,
so carefully collected and artfully arranged by Alexander
was gone.
All scattered, dug up or buried,
along with the plants and sprinklers.

Nothing left but his hand-painted sign

and his crown.

I turned and looked back,

hoping I had imagined the destruction.

I hadn't.

nice night

2011-11-04T19:32:00.006-06:00

Tonight CU is hosting USC here in Boulder.

Live on ESPN.

So the whole world will get to see us get creamed.

Or the whole world will get to see Boulder

on a really nice night.

I recommend the latter.

iPhone Pollock app painting

P.S. Yeah, we got creamed. 42 - 17

I hate football.

I had a hometown overcoming, is all.

But, if you were ever inclined to watch any college football,

Saturday night (6pm MST), #1 LSU plays #2 Alabama.

Now, that'll be some football!

No allegiance here, just maybe a little bet.

Har har.

fall color

2011-11-01T18:40:00.000-06:00

Here comes another snowstorm.

If I were a tree, I'd run away from home.

This is in honor of the last flash of color.

h'weenie

2011-10-31T15:16:00.022-06:00

If you were following this blog last year,

you know that Halloween is big here.

Late last night, I got to doodling with
the Pollock app on my iPhone.

Sometimes I scare myself.

the amazing X

2011-10-28T18:12:00.003-06:00

We have an extraordinary friend

who earned great nicknames like

The Ace of Space

and

The Amazing X

by connecting people around the world

through storytelling.

Though he died of leukemia in 2000,

he still unexpectedly crosses our path

in the most amazing ways.

I was fooling around with a piece of Uart

when BAM!,

just like that, an X appeared.

Thanks, Ace.

(If you scroll down to the campfire at the very end,

you'll see that this blog is dedicated to him.)

alexander's garden

2011-10-24T18:40:00.000-06:00

Art is everywhere.

It appears wherever someone stakes a claim.

Here in our neighborhood,

a seven-year-old kid named Alexander works his magic

on the street corner in front of his house.

He's carefully laid out an extensive collection of treasures

right there on the sidewalk for all the world to enjoy.

For instance, right there below the fossilized ammonite

is one of the finest arrowheads I've ever seen.

And now, here's what I consider to be

Alexander's absolute tour de force...

But wait...

If that weren't enough,

he has an installation directly across the street.

Yes, that's a dollar affixed with Bondo.

I call it the $1 hydrant.

Garrett doesn't know what he thinks of it.

I suppose that for a dog, it's kind of like

Duchamp's urinal.

rip-off artist

2011-10-21T18:25:00.001-06:00

Jala

(who would appreciate a visit, btw)

was feeling flush after selling well at Open Studios,

so she generously ripped off some samples of Uart

and gave them to me.

I can't make myself just slap on some color

and did this little number.

Now go visit her blog and leave a comment.

I'd like one, too.

bout with a trout

2011-10-18T12:44:00.023-06:00

Never mind yesterday's episode of Little Lulu.

I won't bother you with more of them,

but if you're going to see any, it should be the best.
This one is beautifully done and

is the one I loved as a kid.

I still do.

Little Lulu

2011-10-17T14:38:00.048-06:00

Katherine Van Schoonhoven

has posted a good Roadrunner cartoon

and asked what cartoons we liked as kids.

"Little Lulu" always appealed to my own bad self.

Now I'm amazed at the quality of the animation,

especially the background matte painting.

What was your favorite?

barn dance

2011-10-16T14:28:00.001-06:00

Dance 'til the cows come home.

little sistah

2011-10-08T13:37:00.002-06:00

Here's the youngest sistah.

Not the best photograph, but hey...

Yes, I am stalling here.

I've been in the back room

trying to make my pastels behave.

Or at least look like they haven't looked before.

It's a tussle.

follow the leader

2011-10-02T15:20:00.034-06:00

This was the first in my series of black woman.

She's always been a hard act to follow.

Really hard.

never say die

2011-09-29T12:08:00.003-06:00

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

2011-09-26T21:47:00.003-06:00

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

2011-09-23T12:03:00.002-06:00

I admire Bob LaFond's pond paintings,

so I went out to Wonderland Lake

early one morning last week.

It was glorious.

little birds

2011-09-22T15:58:00.005-06:00

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

2011-09-18T13:35:00.012-06:00

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

2011-09-12T14:47:00.001-06:00

heaven

and earth

discombobulated

2011-09-02T12:00:00.000-06:00

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.

basta pesto

2011-08-19T21:50:00.000-06:00

Garrett the Great basks in the sun,

while the basil and tomato plants behind him

photosynthesize yumminess.

Sorry, but when the basil is ready,

pesto production takes precedence over posting.

I must have processed at least a dozen batches

in the last week.

The pesto is stacked like cordwood

in the freezer.

Now it's time for us to go home to Maine

to visit my mom

and eat our weight in lobster rolls.

Ahhh... fattening up for winter.

hydrohypnotherapy

2011-08-11T16:47:00.002-06:00

Oh, ARGH!

The video won't upload.

Too bad.
You really shoulda seen it.

It's like totally hypnotizing.

Then you gotta pee.

stir it up

2011-08-08T14:40:00.001-06:00

Take one part flower

with the iPhone camera.

Add the iPhone Pollock app.

Stir it up.

Ta da!

rainfall

2011-08-04T18:34:00.002-06:00

I could spend another forever on this,

but I've wrung this one dry.

Found out what I wanted to know.

Rain falls and moves on.

So should I.

be cool

2011-08-03T15:27:00.000-06:00

Hot?

Pull down the shade.

Be cool.

anything for a laugh

2011-07-31T14:45:00.008-06:00

last light

2011-07-29T17:50:00.004-06:00

First, let me say how good it feels to be
back into the sticks again.

I don't know why I always post on Fridays,

but it's Friday, so here I am

with my first painting done out of the new pastel box.

An organized palette helps me see what I'm doing.

Even if it's the last light.

blonde self

2011-07-23T11:04:00.003-06:00

This is in honor of

that blonde hair in my self-portrait.

http://youtu.be/eFAkuFSziSs

This heat kills brain cells.

summer self

2011-07-22T18:37:00.000-06:00

Much of the country is locked under

The Heat Dome.

Triple digits anywhere sounds horrendous.

We're on the edge of it here, and it's in the high 90s,

enough to make me, uh, irritable.

At the end of this day, I'm still liking the pastel I'm doing,
so I'm taking my sweaty hands off of it for now.

I clutch my iPhone in the cool of the night

and do these Pollock app things.

Here's a self portrait.

hue and cry

2011-07-21T16:00:00.005-06:00

Is there such a thing as color constipation?

Value vapor-lock?

Pigmentation saturation?

Chroma chelation?

Tone deafness?

Yes, yes, yes, yes and yes.

The other pastel sticks lurking in this studio

(and they are... rolling around with the dust devils

under the furniture,

stashed in cigar boxes, even lost in my drawers),

sticks which didn’t make the cut

into the box in this round,

well, it’s too damn bad. I’ve hit my limit.

At this point, I am hueless and clueless.

Can’t see the forest greens for the tree greens.

Can’t see the sea blues.

I still have neutrals and grays to do,

but they’re merely ghosts.

I need more boxes, but the thought makes me sweat.

It's all getting blurry...

Hard to believe, but this color junkie

has finally overdosed.

Which is not to say I won’t be back for another hit.

Because... sigh... that’s the nature of the beast.

summer froot toot

2011-07-15T22:03:00.005-06:00

I bought one of Dakota's new pastel boxes.

Impressive quality.

But for a born sorter, loading it will take some time.

And a half.

In the meantime,

thank goodness for the iPhone Pollock app.

gypsy wagon

2011-07-08T19:50:00.001-06:00

Two men were busy unloading I don't know what

from their truck early one morning

as I walked by.
They were both wearing strange shoes

and were as swarthy as Romas,

but it was their truck that stopped me in my tracks.

independence

2011-07-04T16:53:00.005-06:00

First, Happy Fourth!

I painted a snappy picture for this day,
which I'll post at the end of this experiment...
First, I'll bait the hook with this:

I'm fishing for the so-and-so who's been
offering my photos, paintings and Pollock app pieces
as wallpaper.
Without attribution.

In the interest of fair trade,

defined on Wikipedia as
a trading partnership, based on dialogue,
transparency and respect,
I have a Creative Commons license
which allows the use of my art posted on this blog,
but WITH attribution.

So I'm hereby declaring my independence
with a purposely fudged print.

May your bottles all be rockets!

the ranch ate my homework

2011-06-29T13:10:00.023-06:00

I know I've been tardy about blogging,

but I've been torn

between the ranch, the studio and the garden.

Lately, the beautiful ranch has been winning.

Even the wisteria on the porch bloomed.

Oh my.

easy listening

2011-06-24T17:16:00.033-06:00

I've included this picture

I took in my swell garden yesterday

to make sure you read this post.

I'm nothing if not shameless.

Read on...

Call me a throwback, but I'm proud to not have a Face... book, that is. Frankly, stupid old blogging still amazes me enough to elicit loyalty. Besides, I'd rather continue to work on achieving hubris in a few things other than being a technoweenie (that's not a hard and fast rule, by the way; whenever it suits my purpose, I've been known to expand my consciousness...).

Back to blogdom and all the amazing things it is. This morning, Nancy Colella mentioned Blog Talk Radio, more specifically the show "Artists Helping Artists". Good to listen to while you paint. Or whatever it is you do. As a matter of fact, there's probably a show about whatever that is, too. Way back in the Stone Age '90s, we started Gogaga, one of the first Internet radio stations, so blog radio is like a grandchild; it tickles me to death. Anyway, I just heard a good interview with Karin Jurick.

Internet radio lives.

Ahhh. Easy listening.

blanket

2011-06-21T11:50:00.008-06:00

To Native Americans,

the landscape is Mother Earth's blanket.

bite me

2011-06-15T12:09:00.017-06:00

Don't bite the hand that feeds you?

Maybe that's where I went wrong.

I didn't feed the stray who bit me.

Let THAT be a lesson.

summer tree

2011-06-11T17:34:00.019-06:00

This is what you get

when I don't know jack.

Ignorance is bliss.

up against the wall, emeffer!

2011-06-09T18:37:00.012-06:00

I have hit the wall.

Against my better(?) judgement, I'll show you what

I just emailed to Jala across the street:

"I just got so pissed at my paints (it happens), I put them all away. I mean, packed all the tubes in boxes, stashed the brushes, stacked the canvases, washed the jars and pails and scrubbed the table. Sick to death of, okay, frustrated by mixing colors. While I was doing all of that, it occurred to me that I could maybe NOT mix colors and use em straight out of the tube. Even bag the brushes and squirt the shit straight onto the canvas.

Or I could, OMG, use pastels. I can make the same friggin' mud outta them.

Or I could embrace making a mess and go multi-media.

At any rate, something's gotta change."

Then I said something about spending time working in the garden.

Thrashing the dirt always helps.

Then I said something about having me a couple of glasses of whine.

I don't drink, so this is a questionable strategy.

In the meantime, here's a medium I can handle...

Ever had a day like this?

spring into summer

2011-06-08T16:20:00.017-06:00

Sweet rain falls.

And suddenly,

before you even get the wheelbarrow out of the shed,

there are flowers.

gummi bears

2011-05-30T15:22:00.016-06:00

It's bear season again.

They're out of their dens and in a mood to party.

They're scarfing bird food, licking grills, raiding refrigerators

and bagging jelly donuts.

Yeah? So?

upslope

2011-05-28T16:11:00.035-06:00

When the wind comes in from the northeast,

the skies darken, it turns cold

and the unmistakable stench of crowded cows

drifts in from the feedlots in Greeley.

While the people from away wonder, "Eeew, what's that?",

we put on our jackets and expect moisture.

Clouds smack up against the mountains,

cool and then fall down,

either as lots of rain and/or snow.

We call it upslope.

Casey Klahn has appropriately asked for clarification...

Continental features like the abrupt rise

of the Rocky Mountains out of the Great Plains

make the weather here very dynamic.

I painted this view looking from our house

across Boulder to Flagstaff Mountain

a little more than a mile to the southwest.

The dark blue is the side of that mountain, shadowed by

thick rain clouds hanging like a fog bank.

Above that is an even denser cloud layer

which can boil up into a thunderstorm.

Although it all looks quite still,

shown in time-lapse, it's one of the greatest shows on earth.

This is an amazing place.

spring-loaded

2011-05-24T15:21:00.020-06:00

For the past month, our weather has been spring-loaded.

Temperatures have ranged from below 30 to over 80

and enough snow, rain and hail has fallen

to take us from drought to flood.

Through it all, a robin built her nest next to the house

and laid her eggs.

She carefully rolls them every 40 minutes,

while fending off marauding squirrels and jays.

The eggs have begun to hatch.

Thunder and lightning crash, and the wind rocks the cradle.

Hail hurls stones at her until, to my amazement,

her mate swoops in, lands on her and

spreads his wings to protect her and the nest.

It's brutal out there, and the drama is wrenching.

It's just one family of robins,

but they're playing out the game of life.

The rule is:

robins live to make baby robins.

devil dog

2011-05-18T18:59:00.015-06:00

It's gloomy and dark and rainy today.

Not so great for painting.

Good time for another iPhone Pollock app.

One that'll warm your soul.

getting there

2011-05-16T16:17:00.023-06:00

Posting art is frustrating.

The colors are inaccurate and the values are off.

Objects appear larger in the mirror.

People from Down East don't like to waste words,

so they say it best.

"You can't get there from here."

message in a bottle

2011-05-13T10:35:00.020-06:00

I'm the last person to understand any of this, so I'm asking this question to anyone who reads this and has ANY information. Yesterday, Blogger appears to have crashed. Unfortunately, the crash took all of last week's samartdog blog with it. As you can see here, the last post that's showing is from May 5th.

I spent several hours (grrrrr) talking to the Great God Google. You know... the one who has no human representative, i.e., no one to talk to. All I could find online was a repeated "We're sorry, but this Blogger service is unavailable", or some such malarkey. Really? You're SORRY??? There was also some no-doubt relevant talk about how this is a Google-wide problem, meaning that it is not just me. Why does that not make me feel any better? Anyway, I did due diligence, filled in the comment box, including the UFO secret code, and sent it off into the blowzone. Someone named (I am not making this up) "ioana.dunea" sent back an email wherein she(?) repeated said secret code OUT LOUD but failed to include any rhyme or reason. Or help.

I am not a patient person. I also have not a shred of tech in me. I am a whale on the beach. The beach is on the infamous Desert Island. I hope you all continue to swim in smooth seas and that one of you can throw me a life line.

HALP!

P.S. I suppose I should be grateful that this post is successfully published. Ironically, the last lost one was titled, "lost dog". Do you think this has anything to do with that Akashic stuff?

lost dog

2011-05-11T10:31:00.001-06:00

There might not be anything sadder than a lost dog.

On her usually hilarious blog, Bye Bye Pie, June Garden recounted the heart-breaking loss of her dog, Tallulah, on May 5, 2011. The extensive readership of BBP suffered the loss, and June received hundreds of concerned comments.

Refresh buttons the world over were worn down to a nub as the faithful awaited the return of the prodigal dog. We all had our own ways of dealing with this potential tragedy. Prayers were offered and tears were shed. For all I know, popcorn was scarfed and vodka was quaffed. Was the poor dog injured and alone, or was the bitch on a bender? Having escaped at bath-time, she was naked! She wasn't wearing her collar, let alone a doggie-cam. Dog knows, Talu is not talking.

Late at night on May 6th, I used my Pollock app to do this painting of her as an offering. I'd like to think it worked. Though no one knew it at the time, Talu was out on a junket. She sauntered back home a few hours later at 4:46 AM, on May 7th.

The upside to this totally traumatic episode is,

now you have the link to Bye Bye Pie.

Enjoy.

akashic clouds

2011-05-05T13:32:00.026-06:00

In March, these clouds appeared

at an extremely high altitude

and filled the entire sky.

I had never seen anything like them before.

Then William Cook posted "Simulated Akashics"

on his excellent blog .

Hmmm...

harrowing

2011-05-02T16:29:00.006-06:00

Ranch life is tough.

Even the harrow eventually gives up.

regardez

2011-04-28T10:56:00.013-06:00

harbor morning

2011-04-24T15:32:00.009-06:00

Northeast Harbor

sunrise

2011-04-23T12:05:00.029-06:00

As the sun rose a week ago,

a light snow from the night before

dusted the stones and frosted the fence.

It melted on the patent leather pavement,

and the tulips flushed.

lop-eared retriever

2011-04-22T13:01:00.011-06:00

and god said...

2011-04-17T16:34:00.014-06:00

Before the do-over,

trees grew here.

Desertification happens.

rite of spring

2011-04-15T14:06:00.020-06:00

The grass grows

and dogs eat it.

Urp.

gold coast

2011-04-10T17:12:00.008-06:00

No matter what I think I'm doing,

things rarely end up looking anything like what I expected.

This painting was a total surprise.

shadow puppet

2011-04-07T15:31:00.017-06:00

It was suggested that Hallie might be

out there doing shadow puppets.

Actually, this little guy

was already lined up to be my next post.

Does this count as ESP?

dog door

2011-04-06T17:37:00.008-06:00

violets

2011-04-02T12:29:00.029-06:00

It doesn't rain here anymore,

so my fantasy of a spring rainstorm will have to do.

Like hopeful harbingers, violets come up and bloom anyway.

The dry heat intensifies their sweet scent.

My grandmother loved violets;

I can hear her saying,

"Don't give up."

onion

2011-03-31T13:20:00.023-06:00

Pick a pepper or the onion one.

The onion one.

rain?

2011-03-28T13:35:00.006-06:00

A tenth of an inch fell out of the sky this morning.

We'll take it.

By 11 am, the sun was blazing.

Hardly time to open the umbrella.

overboard

2011-03-25T15:49:00.016-06:00

I don't know, but I may have gone a little overboard.

It's been known to happen.

Please take this as an apology if you need to, Coco.

Now leave me and my computer alone!

the boogieman

2011-03-21T17:16:00.019-06:00

In 1797, Francisco de Goya did this creepy etching called,

"Que viene el Coco".

a.k.a., "Here comes the boogieman".

As far as I'm concerned,

spammers, hackers, and all manner of ghosts in the machine

are boogiemen.

Disguised as "Sharon", it paid a visit to Celeste Bergin

in a nefarious plot to purloin her art files.

In my case, the thug has grabbed my email files,

Don't try to send email to me;

I'll get it, but I won't be able to identify it or open it.

What a jerk.

By the way, I never knew the boogieman's name is Coco.

Did you?

dream house

2011-03-17T13:26:00.022-06:00

Some people post a painting every day.

I seem to always post mine on Fridays.

Then it's back to the ranch to reload.

TGtomorrowIF.