Gorgeous Sunday

It is 76 degrees with a crystal cerulean blue New Mexico Sky. Great day to be outdoors! I must confess my arms are sore though...I weed wacked all the weeds creeping onto the driveway, into the edge of the garden, along side the rasberry patch and around the back "lawn". We have 7.5 acres of "natural" grasses, wild iris, blue flax, indian paintbrush and scores of flowers whose name I don't know. In the front, I've carved out an area in the "L" of the house and it is teeming with columbine, iris, roses and some giant, about to burst peonies. Except last night somebody (deer? elk?) ate the flowers off of some of the columbine. If they try again tonight they'll get a nose full of, um, wolf urine. It worked last year. We'll see.

This morning we wandered up to Red River to personally congratulate my friend and gallery artist, Jacqui Binford-Bell. She won "Most Colorful" and (drum roll) Best of Show at the Red River Wine and Art Festival. The Best of Show is a big deal, because it was judged by one of New Mexico's best known and legendary artists, Ed Sandoval. Well done, Jacqui! Way to go!

And now, I'm loathe to go inside...it's way too nice out here to be in there...laying brick. I should also be painting. It's supposed to thunderstorm again tomorrow...there will be time for painting and brick laying. It's the first day of summer...and the weather today makes me believe it. Think I'll pour a glass of wine and let the birds and the wind serenade me.

To Donate, or Not

I know it's not Sunday (that's usually when I post) but it is quiet here at the gallery now, and I had a great conversation with Jennifer Cavan which compells me to write. She wrote a great post on "how long does it take?" (to create a piece). And as she says, there is so much "not art" that goes into the business of being a professional artist that the casual viewer doesn't see. So, whether you spend an hour, a day, a week or a year, that process is not the whole piece. I'm starting there, because our "great conversation" was about donating work (or not) to the many organizations who ask. She might post about too, but I thought I'd get the conversation going here.

Over the years, I would hazard a guess that I've donated, somewhere in the range of $25,000 in my art. So, why do I severely limit what I donate and to what organization now? Let's see what those donations did for me, for the organization, for the art community, for the galleries.

If I donate a piece with a retail value of $500, what is that for me? lost revenue of $500. It is basically "advertising expense" and based on tracking, very poor at that. Worthwhile advertising nets revenue. Not so a donated piece.

How about the organization that gets it? Once in a while at the Music From Angel Fire Art Auction, a piece will go for at or near it's value. But way more often, most work gets "sold" for about 20 cents on the dollar. So, they have to sell ALOT of art to generate reasonable revenue...and if you've ever been to one, you know that they do.

Now, examine the impact of that. If, at the auction my $500 piece was lucky, and sold for $200, the lucky winner got a "bargain", and I'll hear about it for the next few years. Will they come buy a piece from me? Not likely. Will the person that was bidding against them? Not likely. Why? because they'll go to another auction and try again. I have actually had people tell me that they love my work, but will wait for the MFAF auction. Those same people say, "I love this gallery, I hope you are successful!" and walk out the door without spending a dime. So, I wonder, how does that work?

A few years ago I donated a $300 piece to a local group and they sold it in a "Live" auction, for $35. While one person jumps up and down about how they "stole"it, several hundred others watched it. What is the impact of that?

That said, yes, I will donate to the MFAF auction. Maybe a handful of others. But I sincerely hope those of us who buy at similar auctions will consider supporting the artists, as well as the organizations. And I would encourage the non-profits that auction art, consider more than their own bottom line, look for ways to support the artists that make their fundraisers possible.

I have lots of ideas on that......

Grey and Rainy Sunday

Good day for a day off! Dark skies, howling wind and scattered rain, now soft, now hard, now scattered. I hope it doesn't damage the beautiful peach colored iris that just opened this morning in my front garden! They are lovely.

So it is a good day to stay in. Which is good because we had big day yesterday! My morning was filled with people and painting as I did demo after demo of painting watercolor on yupo paper. In all, I think I did 14 paintings...some as small as 4 x 6 inches, some much larger. By the end I was wiped, but I ran home to shower and rest a bit before the big wedding we had been anticipating for what seemed like months. I'm sure it wasn't, but we were really looking forward to it. And we were not disappointed! Congrats and all the best, Tom and Bonnie. The setting was beautiful, the ceremony sweet and fun, and the party afterward will likely not be topped! It was way beyond fun!

We actually slept in this morning, sleeping off the exhaustion. This morning we spent mostly brainstorming. We want to start a business incubation center and were tossing around ideas and dreams in advance of a meeting tomorrow to pitch it to some locals who might have guidance and know-how. What kind of thing would you do with a business incubator..or do you need one, and why? I'd value your input.

When we decided to move on with the day, I headed down to what was the hot tub room and did more brick laying. The floor was so badly out of level, that it is tricky to fix it and I'll have to remove the trim from the doors because it is now too long! To slide a brick underneath it would mean that brick would be a full 1/4 inch below all the others....and I'm barely a third of the way across the room. wow. It'll be good when it's done though. At least I know how to do it right now!

So, it's almost 4pm and the angel food cake John is making has the whole house smelling incredibly yummy. It's my favorite cake and strawberries were on sale....guess what I'll be having for desert tonight! oops..the dryer is chiming it's "I'm done" song. Guess I'd better get to it.

Time to get productive...

It's been about two weeks, I think, since the last post. Sorry, guess I've just been busy.

The brick is still being slowly laid in the great drying out of the room that held the hot tub. Sand is mostly dry now, and the adobes are dry, but the mud in between is still damp, so I'm holding repainting the walls for more dry time. I'll finish the brick after the walls are painted, anyway.

In the meantime, alot has been happening around here. Let's see, since I last wrote, I was elected President of the Angel Fire Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, held the annual planning meeting (which was very productive!) and have been diligently working on the stack of commissions sitting in my studio. In the middle working on the 4 16 x 20's I got the drawing done for an 18 x 24 and got a rush order for an ink and watercolor illustration for a local builder.

That, has been quite a challenge. The unfinished house Ray Renfroe of BlueRay homes is building is going to be stunning...but capturing the detail through the array of trees, scaffolding and workers has been a task! I spent 3 hours on the drawing yesterday, another hour last night and I have sent it off to a friend to print it on paper big enough that I can transfer it to watercolor paper in a half sheet (15 1/2 x 22). Once transferred, I'll ink all the lines, then wash in some watercolor. I have to have it done by tomorrow...so hopefully she can get it printed this morning! Whew!

So, off I go, to add a few more layers to the three canvases I have in process. Feast or famine...I'll take the feast!

Tired...where's that hot tub?

Well, I guess I'm not ready for it,though my neck, shoulders, back and knees, say otherwise! I did get the brick off of the water soaked sand today. In a way, it was a relief.

When I was building the house (15 years ago), it went like this:
Months before, we had selected a hot tub from a home show. "We won't deliver it till you say so" they promised. yeah, right. The day they called we were putting the 8 x 8 beams (to hold the ceiling and the trusses to hold the roof) in place...one every four feet. I was in charge of connecting the straps from the crane around each beam and my staff were on the walls ready to guide them into place, when the call came in. They wanted to deliver the hot tub. The walls of the room were built, but no door frame or windows yet, and certainly, no floor(or roof for that matter). Since the floor is brick on sand, that was problematic (oh, way more than we knew then.) So, I'd strap a beam, climb down, run in, lay a few brick, run out, climb up, strap a beam............you get the idea.

The sum of it is that it was less than perfect, by a long shot. The crew from the hot tub place arrived s I layed the final brick, brought in the tub, leveled it (miracle) and left.

All this time and since, that tub left (in pieces) and another came in, and left (in pieces) and now, after 15 years that floor has come up and is stacked in rows in the only level area that existed, right in front of the double doors. No tub coming in just yet. The sand underneath is miraculously drying (since it's been raining off and on for the past few days) and it's clear I'll need more sand to get it level. The room, in this state, combined with the overcast skies and rain take me right back to 1994 and building this house. Then, it rained for 13 weeks straight. Well, I supposed it stopped now and then, but it sure didn't feel like it. When it rains up here, the temperature dropss to 55 (or lower) and it's just plain cold and damp. Problematic when you are building a house out of dirt...but that's another story. A long one.

Stay tuned. I'm tired. good night all. and here's to you, Dad. (Veteran, Vietnam, multiple tours. Also, another story)

The Scratchboard is finished

Thanks to all of you who took the survey...and so, here are the results: Paint the stems and centers....3 to 1!

So that's what I did, and here it is:
I'm calling it "Connections". To finish off I'll spray it with a clear archival protectant, then mount it and frame in shadowbox style. It won't need any glass. I'm happy with how it came out, so thanks for the input!

I videoed the process, so soon there will be videos on both youtube and katherinesarttv.tv I'll be sure and let you know when I get them up. cheers...and happy Memorial Weekend!

Where should I go now?

Ok...I finished phase two...

One is to create the drawing, transfer it to the board and then scratch out the outline. ok, so maybe that's three...

In that case, I finished step 4. So this is what it looks like....
so...here's a survey for you. Click Here to take survey

Only three questions...so....I'll post again after I hear from you!

Scatchboard Takes Time...but it's Worth It!

I've been working on this one for a while now and progress is steady, but not fast. I did video alot of this and will be putting it on www.katherinesarttv.tv as soon as I get it edited..which is challenging because something is using up my hard drive like mad.

Anyway, I showed you the outline done earlier, and here is a pic of me at it, and what it looks like right now:

As you can see, I've "scratched" out just about half of the daisies. I'll continue down the board with this step, then review it carefully to lift more where I need to. Step three is to paint in the stems and the centers, if i want to. I'll decide later.

This is a 20 x 16 board, so its taking a good investment of time. It's soothing for me though, so it's not like it's laborious, and given the stress I'm experiencing otherwise, it's a good thing it's not finished.
So, back to the studio head I. Watch for more progress, and I'll let you know when the video is online.

Sunday Serenity

Sitting on the front porch, gazing at the lake as I type. It's 76 degrees, and the only sound is the birds, the frogs at my neighbors pond and the tinkle of Grace's collar as she sniffs the ground like she's never done it before.

I'm relaxing as I post, having just returned from Albuquerque where the noise and the traffic was getting to me. I have tons to do in the next few weeks, with 6 commissioned paintings to produce by July, a hot tub to get out of the house so I can pull up the brick to dry the sand, and a myriad of "Spring" household duties to attend to. Oh, and there's the gallery. This coming Friday is the monthly reception "4th Friday" event. Hmmm. I'll breath deeply now and run tomorrow.

The hot tub will be going out in pieces. Daniel is coming on Wednesday to literally cut it up. I'm so mad at it that I absolutely refuse to remove the doors and frame to get it out whole. That's what it gets for causing so much trouble! Once it's gone, I'll pull up the brick (as I just said) and let the sand underneath dry...then re-level it and re-lay the brick. Then, a new hot tub is welcome to come to the room. A smaller one would be nice, to give us more space in the room for growing things. That's what we're hoping/praying for, anyway.

Robie (my roomba) is vaccuuming for me. Which is good, because even in 24 hours of being gone Grace left an alarming part of herself all over the floor...black hair, floating about as you walked through and disturbed the air!

Yup, I'm definitely blessed. And, there with the triumphant electronic toot of Robies "I'm finished" tone, I'll sign off and go investigate the freezer for what to make for dinner. John will be proud of me. I think it will be fish (talapia) and asparagus. Yum.

Hands in the Soil

It's cathartic. I don't think I ever even got to the garden last year, so when I headed out this afternoon to coax the weeds from the soil, I had forgotten how cathartic it is. There is just something about the sun warming your shoulders, the wind tossing your hair, the damp soil soaking through the knees of your jeans. The dirt in your fingernails, even though you were wearing gloves, and the errant twig protruding from your sleeve.

There's something in my thumb now, and it hurts...probably a rose thorn or something similar. I pruned the roses, trimmed the potentia , raked the pine needles to expose the rich mulch I did get down last fall. I dug out grasses and weeds and dandelions galore. Now, it's a lovely site to behold, the happy grape hyacinth with bright purple berry like heads bouncing in the breeze, free from the tangles of grasses and weeds that were holding them back.

Once cleared, the circular space in the center of the front garden looks clean and the columbine are standing tall, buds just beginning to form. I discovered the peonies are up and about a foot tall, the rebar I used to support it when it reaches some 3 feet, lying beside it, ready to be deployed.

Ahh. It's that good, tired feeling. Tomorrow, it's back to the gallery. Tuesday, its Taos, where I need to pick up some canvases for my latest commission. (yay...thank you Dr. Tami!) I already have compositions swimming around in my head.

Oh...and, Happy Mother's Day to all you Moms out there. And a big CONGRATULATIONS and wow, I'm so proud of you, to my sister..the middlest one. She (Rebeka) just got a HUGE promotion at work...one she richly deserved and waited a long time for. And Thanks to God for honoring her! I'm very blessed!

Water, water, soaking wet

No, it's not raining..though it's dark and grey. It did rain yesterday for 4 or 5 hours...that was lovely. But, alas, after filling the hot tub, after the pump wet end repair, the pipes that were plugged (because they leaked) around the moto-massage, the exposed sand where I had pulled up brick to see underneath, started creeping wet toward the walls again. Heavy sigh.

Oh, shall I back up? We've had this tub (Sovereign by HotSpring Spas) for 11 years. It has served us well...husband in it multiple times a day to assist joints with movement. We noticed rather suddenly that moisture was creeping up the stucco on the outside of the...er...um..adobe walls. O drat..now what?

I sought the expert opinion of my favorite engineer, who scoped around the house in 50 mph wind and snow, to grimly turn to me and say, 'I think it's your hot tub, dear' . drat again.

I pulled up brick and found soaking wet sand underneath. The brick didn't show it because they had been well sealed. The adobe walls, on the other hand...um...wet. Thank God we bought the "stabalized" version, but still.
Great.

I pulled up brick from all four corners of the room. Wet. everywhere, wet. Heavy sigh. I told you part of this story in an earlier post, as endeavoring to remove the siding to get to the foam and sprayed insulation inside, was how I hurt myself.
(Wet sand from under the brick.......)

We found one leak, at the moto massage. Our spa guy plugged it, and we filled it and turned it on. Water sprayed from the pipe below the one we just plugged. Ok, we can deal with that. Right? Wrong. Within 24 hours of filling it, the exposed sand, which had nicely dried, began to turn dark brown with mosture again.


Resolute, I set about this morning to find the rest of the leaks. I thought carefully about how to leverage the siding off. And, thankfully, it worked. I'm typing, tired and sore, with raw hands, but my tender back is not screaming.

I pulled off the siding on three sides and started ripping out foam. If I found it dry, I moved down till I pulled my fingers out wet.

What you see is, is the window sill that I curled myself into, the wet brick between the window/wall and the edge of the hottub where I removed the siding and the foam.) The tub is very close to one wall, and I was sitting in the window sill (good thing I'm skinny and small and curl my self up to a ball and still work! I'd show you a picture of the process, but I was rather busy. this will have to do!)

Wet foam found, I climbed around to the other side and started digging. wet and wet and wet. soon water poured out and soaked me, literally. Oh no! NO! NO! Alas, no. Shaking my head and soaked through I hauled myself out of the space I was in. The foam was wet and red, because my fingers were bleeding by now.

Good grief. Enough. I quit. I'm done. I'll let the Spa guy come and tell me that I'm right. Then, if that's the case, out it goes. Out, which is tough and tragic. Tough, because the french double doors and the door frame have to come out to get it out. Tragic, because, as I said, husband used it EVERY DAY. Tough, because we don't have the budget to buy a new one. Tragic there too. Tough because my hands are raw with no satisfaction.

It's the big pipe that runs all along one side to feed the foot jets. And the other pipe below the one fixed. And the other one we fixed before that. Why they make tubs that way, (with sprayed in foam and insulation so the pipe struction is complete encased in hardened goo.) is beyond me. Yes, I get the insulation, and all that, but there must be an eaiser way. hot tubs spring leaks. everyone knows that. so make it easy to find and fix them. ugh.

The bright side is that the spa is draining as I type. There were no chemicals in yet so its happily watering the hillside. And, my heart is hopeful still though I see no reason to hope. Somehow, someway, something will happen to help me solve this. That, i believe with all my heart. I'll let you know what happens. In the mean time, my scratchboard (see the facebook page) is calling me.,

My List: 5 TV Women I Want on My Side!

Ok, it's time for some fun. Spring has sprung and I hear a distant giggle. In spite of that, the usual small town murmuring catches my ear and I think I need a burst of strength. In considering that, some TV women came to mind, and why I'd like to have them on my side. So, here goes:

1. Megyn Kelly (Fox News morning Co-Anchor with Bill Hemmer) Why? When the news breaks she'll give me my 15 minutes of Fame! (hee hee)
2. Mary Shannon (Mary McCormack, In Plain Sight, USA Network) Why? She'll hide me when my 15 minutes have passed.
3. Teresa Lisbon (Robin Tunney, The Mentalist, ABC) Why? Because Patrick Jane (Simon
Baker) is hot, and will figure out the truth.








4. Abby Sciuto (Pauley Perrette, NCIS, ABC) Why? because she'll get to the bottom of any mystery, with pigtails and a cafpow!








and

5. Zeva David (Cote de Pablo, NCIS, ABC) Because she'll take out all the bad guys and then I'll be

SAFE! Go ladies! (I just couldn't resist! Gotta have some fun some time!

Ahhh...Spahhhhh

I didn't think it would happen. Our Angel Fire Divas group has been planning for a couple of months for this event, and I didn't even pay attention because I didn't think I could go. A day at the spa and overnight in the lap of luxury at El Monte Sagrado, here in Taos. Here in Taos? Yes, here I sit in the gorgeously appointed room that I am sharing with my sweet friend, Natasha. (not her real name, as we have all adopted seudonyms for the day. I, am now, Olivia)

This, all due to the gift which I bear with great tenderness....to paint. Natasha wanted a new painting, and I wanted to cherish the quiet and relish a hydrating facial! All I can say is, WAHOO!

So, while the rest of the group are being pedicured, manicured, massaged and facialed, I'm in a giant overstuffed leather chair with laptop on my lap, posting! My turn will come next. I'm already relaxed, just with the anticipation!

This is an extraordinarily rare treat for me, and not one that I will likely have again very soon...but who knows. Perhaps my art will fly off the walls and my name will be heard on the lips of famous collectors. I'm given to dreaming and visions.

I could get used to this!

Beautiful Sunday Morning

Wow. I can't believe it's been a month since I last posted! My how time flies...regardless of whether or not you're having fun!

Of course, there's not really a good excuse. Part of it is a result of messing up my back/ribs again, yes again. Guess it hadn't really healed before I forgot I wasn't supergirl and set about to tear the hot tub apart. I was determined to find the leak(s). Well, I actually succeeded, but not without injury. Sigh. It's been more than a week, and it still sucks the air out of me if I move wrong.

Won't let it slow me down to much. I can't, there's just too much to do! I'm "off" today, so I'm going to head to the studio and paint. Wahoo! I'm working on a large watercolor on canvas, and if you get my newsletter it's in the header of this month's edition, even though its not quite done.

Of course, as Mr. Murphy would have it, the newsletter directs people to my site, which of course is down this morning.

Add that the fact that my house is under attack by those infuriating flickers. When I go outside to yell at them to get off my house, they mock me, laughing and come flying just past my reach.

However...

I'm determined to have a fabulous day! And I hope you will too....

Back in the Studio

It's been months...maybe even more than a year. It took me about two weeks to finish up the reorganization of the home studio. I still need to paint walls, but they'll do for now. And I've been painting like my life depended on it. My feet hurt, my back hurts...but my soul is happy.

I had to do this because I don't really have much room to paint at the new gallery. I do have a table, but can't work on anything larger than about 16 x 20 because the palette and water have to be on the same table with the canvas. Here, I have room for a 48" wide canvas, and I'm lovin' it.

I showed you pics of the previous disaster, so here is what it looks like now, and the work I have finished in the past couple of days.

First, the new studio:
This is looking in from the door. Gone is the cumbersome (but nice) big desk left over from days when this room served as office and studio (before the gallery). This one (below) is looking to the right of the desk as you face it. Here I have an easel, and pastel station 1.
And this is looking back the other way and pastel station 2. So, there you have it....and now for the new work. Some of this is commissioned and pres-sold, some if it is not. Ready? Set? Here we go:
this is a two piece vertical diptich...One composition, two canvases. Each one is 24 high and 18 wide, Watercolor on Canvas. I thought I'd never finish this, and truth be told a few edges still need some work. Next we have two commissioned pieces:

this is 12 x 18 pastel "watered garden". This one is 24 x 18, watercolor on canvas.

I've had a stack of unfinished pieces sitting around, and am now finishing them. Here's one. It started out as a demonstration for a class...of painting watercolor on hot press paper, which is a whole different experience than painting on cold press paper..or canvas..or yupo. Typically, if I'm not working on canvas or yupo, it's 140 lb cold press paper (Arches) Arches papers are hand pressed and made in France. I think it's the best watercolor paper you can buy, and I'm working "traditionally" it's Arches paper. The hot press paper tears much more easily so you have to work "fresh" without too many layers (just the opposite of the many layered approach I tend to use on canvas.) Anyway.. here it is:
I haven't measured it, but I think it's probably 12 x 16. And there is one more ( I told you I'd been painting like mad!) This one is watercolor on canvas, without too many layers. It is 16 x 12. It's a traditional depth canvas so it'll go it in a canvas frame...the edges too narrow to paint.
And there you have it, ladies and gents!

Counting Down To ArtsFest!

View all Angel Fire Community Center events at Eventful

My 20th Wedding Anniversary!

Wow. Some would call it a miracle. In this age of living fast and moving on when things get hard, it really is, I suppose. 20 years ago, on this day, I was donning the white gown, trembling all over, excited, terrified and happy. Happy still? Yes. Has it been easy? No. Would I do it all again? There's no doubt in my mind. So, to the Big Silly, Happy Anniversary! And here's to 20 more!

Changing Seasons and Gallery Tour

The wind is howling today...is it blowing in Spring...or bringing much needed snow? With Spring Break looming...we're all praying for snow, though personally, I'm ready for summer. I'd just as soon skip the spring winds and warm today-cold tomorrow cycle we often get. I guess we'll see.

In the meantime, I told you I'd post a video gallery tour....so here it is. It's in two parts because YouTube has a limit of 10 minutes per video...and it came in at 12, so I had to split it into two. So, if you haven't seen the new space...or haven't seen it in a while, take a peek now.

Getting Ready for 4th Friday

Well, it's here. After a 4 month hiatus, Fourth Fridays at Angel Fire ArtSpace are returning! Bigger and better, as Carol Rupp of the Rupp Gallery partners with me for a great evening! I'm taking a break from the current commissions I'm working on to get ready and the gallery is looking spic and span and lovely!

Got the new lights installed in the jewelry room (yay) and it's all dazzling, even though I haven't painted that room yet. I'm hoping to do that next week...we'll see. See...at least one can do that now in there! Made a BIG difference. Bob walked in to make sure they had finished with the installation and as he was asking if they finished he stopped mid-sentence and said, "Wow...I see they did!"

So here's a few shots of the gallery (as far as my web cam can see). This is the entrance. I guess I should really do a video tour...hmmm. I'll do that. In the meantime, here's what I see when I'm sitting at my desk:
Nice, huh?

Well, I think so, anyway. So, if you're in town, or headed this way, stop in and say "hi"!

Finished the Painting

I'm breathing again, thanks to Norma and ibuprofen!

Anyway, I did finish the church I showed you a few posts back. Just so you don't have to scroll, here's how it looked in progress:

And, now, it's done. Notice the deeper, bolder color, shadows and detail. The rock facade by far, took the most time, but the result is worth it. The video will be online soon at www.katherinesarttv.tv

The trick is many
glazes of transparent color, with increasing amounts of pigment as you go. I often alternate colors too, to get a rich appearance in the end.

In the mean time I'm working hard on the development of katherinesarttv.tv Watch soon for a link here to a survey that I'll use to help me make the site and the videos what you want.

Painting is perhaps the most soothing activity I can engage in. My own version of meditation. When I'm painting, my brain feels dis-engaged. I'm not thinking about the outcome, the bills, the laundry or anything else temporal. I don't suppose you can understand it, until you experience it. Part of the focus of the new site is just that. Learning how painting can ease your stress, all while creating something beautiful. It's not about pure realism...that's what camera's are for, with no disrespect to the painters of photo realistic works. It's about interpretation, the emotional connection to the work, whether you are the painter, the viewer or the collector. People buy art, because they make a connection to it. It's completely subjective. Not everyone will like what I paint, and that's ok. I mean, it would be great, but it's completely unrealistic. I don't like everything I see either!

I can look at piece, like this one that I just finished, and walk right back into the same state of mind, walking in through that opening in the gate to all the places I was when I painted it. That's the best part for me...and why I paint. Yes, I love selling them. But sometimes I miss a piece after its gone. I'll be looking for something in my Art Archives folder, and see an image...and say, "where is that? did I sell it? Who?...." then I'll open the image, look at it, and walk right back into it. I dunno. Maybe it's weird...but it's true.

Learn to paint. And may you find that bliss too.......

OUUUUUUUWWWWCH!

Just what I didn't need. I woke up in the middle of the night with a sharp pain in my right side. It radiated down my leg and I couldn't take a deep breath. I got up and stumbled to the bathroom only to remember that I'd put all of the ibuprofen in John's bag. I filled a glass of water, drank it and went back to bed.

My brain entered panic zone. Oh God, what if it is my appendix? My insurance has a $5000 deductible. I don't have time for this. Please.

I tossed and turned and turned and tossed. The pain like a bullet lodged in my right side. I finally turned on my stomach and immediately discovered that the source of the pain was actually my back, or my side, or my ribcage. I made fist and applied deep pressure to the spot on my lower back that screamed the loudest...slowly, slowly the pain in my right side eased to dull throb. Whew. Relief. Not my appendix. What did I do!?!

My brained rolled past the events of the past few days. Oh yeah. I was clearing out the desk I sold. I crawled underneath to disconnect everything, unscrew it and get it ready to clear out. As I lay on the floor underneath it, twisting to find that screw, I was taken back to August, when I was lying on the floor of the garage, in a similar position, screwing in the flashing at the bottom of the wall. My back went in to spasm, then, and I couldn't move. I was on the floor in the garage, twisted like a french creweler (no idea how to spell that) and unable to move. I couldn't get up. I laid there till the spasm seemed to pause, rolled over, crawled closer to the rail that the door runs in, grabbed it and pulled myself up like it was rope I was climbing a mountain. Then I headed for the hot tub. I'd forgotten the weeks of slowly rehabilitating those muscles. The heating pads, the tiger balm, the ibuprofen.

It was all coming back to me, as lay there, suddenly recalling lying on the floor of the studio, twisted once again, once again holding the cordless drill, applying pressure and then the awful spasm that followed. OOOOOOOW.

So, I did it again. Thank God I had a massage scheduled for this morning. But, in fact, I barely got there. Once upright, I was dizzy. Couldn't take a deep breath. And wow, some definite pain encompassing my middle and dominant on the right side. It feels like an overly tight girdle with pins sprinkled through out.

Poor Norma. She worked like a warm blanket for an hour and a half. Well, at least I can sit up, and walk. I hurt. Alot. I apparently made all those muscles that wrap around your ribcage and then run sort of sideways around you and connect to the ones that go up and down your spine.....Very Unhappy. I can almost turn my head side to side. I can't slouch...my mom would say that's a good thing, but it's not very much fun. My arms are resting on the laptop, and every now and then my sleeve brushes the touch pad, which sends the scroll bar wild. Deep sigh. At least I can breathe again. I am, however, grateful. Norma confirmed it. Not the appendix. Whew. Thank God. Just my own stupidity at my own denial that I am not 25, and not, despite some popular opinion, superwoman. I'll head home tonight and hope i can get that lid open on the hot tub. Norma said, "how old are you, my dear? 92? " "No", I said. "192". Or so that's how it feels. Sigh again. This too shall pass...but it will be a while.

Starting at ....hmmm, where?

I'm tired, but my brain is spinning so I guess I should post. Maybe it will give me some clarity.

J and I went to Albuquerque yesterday, so he could fly away this morning, and so he did. I then went about my list, and number one was a visit to his mom. She's great by the way. She lured me to see her newly installed, less than new, computer, and sat down. Uh oh. I leaned over her till she was afraid that I would end up looking "like an apostrophe", and then took her seat. For starters, starting is sooo slow, one could nap while waiting for it to load. (Wow, am I spoiled or what? with my (not new anymore) Core(TM)2 Duo processor and 2GB RAM..I've no patience anymore for a 1200Mhz Celeron with 256mgs RAM) Guess I better go digging in my closet.......

She's learning to go online, and use email. The whole business of doing that is perplexing to her and I'd been home for an hour and half (it's a three hour drive) when the phone rang. I took care to put everything she regularly needs, on her desktop, and showed her how to open, minimize and close them. Oh dear. I have a new empathy for those tech support dudes who have to try to diagnose what's happening when we say things like, "well, when I click on the blue thingy with the rainbow colors, nothing happens!"

Oh no...don't get me wrong, my mother-in-law, miss Jane, is a delight. The sheer fact that she's really trying to give it a go with the computer, is almost miraculous, and I REALLY don't want to discourage that!

I did notice that her arthritis twisted hand was really having a hard time with the mouse. hmm. is there a better tool? She does ok with the touch pad on a laptop, but right now, has a desktop and a typical ms mouse and keyboard. I have a spare track ball, but I'm not sure that would be any better for her. I'll have to take it down there and see. Any ideas? Please comment and let me know. The answer to "nothing happens when I click here" is that the curser wasn't really there when she clicked, and then when it was, she couldn't really (double) click fast enough (my, the things we take for granted!)

I put solitaire on her desktop and told her to play, hoping that the practice would help her with the mouse. It was ok till she inadvertently closed it. oops. Can you hear the phone ringing?

Too bad mouse pads aren't "touch pads"! hmmm...interesting idea...anybody make one?

I bet there are a whole lot of finger-mobility challenged people who could use something like that!

As for me, I need a massage and good night's sleep. At the hotel last night I woke up every time the heater (two feet from my side of the bed) came on (at about every half hour). Then there was the smoke detector in some room other than ours that kept going off. Not the beep beep beep of a low battery. But the Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.......(ad inifinitum) of one that's been triggered. I pulled a spare pillow from the floor and covered my head. ack. No wonder I left Jane with questions about how to open a new game of solitaire!

So, I'm hoping it will dump snow tonight so that i can't get out. I know, I know. Not what I usually say. But I have long list of things that need to be done here at home...and J is gone...and it's the perfect time to get busy. Maybe I'll just play hooky anyway.....Wait...I'm the owner...if I'm not there, the gallery is not open. Sigh. Guess not. The list will have to wait a bit longer. I have paintings to paint and videos to record and edit. Oh, and grant proposals to finish and .........
good grief. I better stop now or I'll overwhelm myself! Good night, friends. Let me know if you know of a way to help Ms. Jane. Thanks.

Bail Out Blinders

I have my bail out blinders on. Can't stand to listen to the news anymore. Spend, spend, spend and benefit a few, but not any of us who do the right thing, fight like hell to pay the mortgage on time, borrow from peter to pay paul every day of the month, struggling to keep that credit score well above 7. There will be nothing for us. Once again penalized by the politicians for being a stand up person and doing the right thing. It makes me sick.

I called the mortgage company, to see if they'd work out a lower rate. Nothing doing. Know why? because I'm not behind. I can't refinance because I'd never qualify in the current credit debacle, so, because I've done the right thing, I'm screwed. How upside down is that!?!

Deep sigh. Ok, I'm done with the rant. I'll turn my thoughts back to the task at hand which is the development of www.katherinesarttv.tv and www.myarttv.tv (not up yet). I'm recording everything I do every time I pick up a pencil or a brush. My camera's hard drive is almost full, so probably this week I'll start editing video. While it is time consuming work, I'm excited when I'm at that because I'm excited about these sites and getting them fully operational. From the 10 or 12 hours I have recorded right now, I'll probably get 3 or 4 videos, all on watercolor. In the next set I'll focus on fun techniques but that's probably at least a week off.

It's way more soothing to ponder watercolor, and better yet to pick up that brush. Unfortunately my home studio is still a disaster zone and my brushes and paints are at the gallery. I guess that's ok, because the dryer is beconning. Back to domestic duty. Important stuff, you know, laundry. So off I go.

Superbowl Sunday thoughts

A last minute once over clean up ensued first thing this morning, since we decided about 12 hours earlier to host a game party. We've never been big football fans, but as we were watching a recorded NCIS on the 80 inch projection screen, we said, "hmmm...."

So, phone calls made and friends coming over, thank goodness I have Robie. That's how we affectionately refer to our Roomba (vacuuming robot). I refer to him as he, even though he has a she voice. No, it's not a transvestite vacuum...It's just silly. But he does do a good job, as long as I've remembered to empty and clean him after the last job. Even that's not a big deal, because he reminds me, "beep beep, please remove and clean Roomba's brushes" or "beep, beep, beep please inspect and clean Roomba's cliff sensor (so he doesn't fall down the stairs).

Anyway, I turn him to go on, and he runs around the house sucking up all the dog hair and debris which gives me time to clean the bathrooms (joy) and, oh...up...post on my blog. gotta love that!

So..I won't pontificate about who will win. To be honest, I don't even know who's playing. There you go..my true Artist self showing through again. At any rate, we'll have fun....and I hope you do too!

Painting in Progress

Ok, so I thought since I talked about the piece I'm working on, I would show you the current status. so, here's a pic. The angle is a little wierd because I took it with my webcam, but you can get the idea. And they are, as a result of the webcam..reversed, so that's kind of funny! oh well. I'll show you the finished piece when its done, and you will be able to see the difference.

This has about 5 glazes on it..except for the steeple which only has one..so you can see the difference.
It's fun, but time consuming. and if you're not carefuly, the newest layer will lift the layer below it!

So, stay tuned and I'll put it up when its done!