Good Friday

Good Friday

8.5" x 11"

sepia ink

Artists:

or

If you know an artist: in your area, you might pass this on :

I recently learned about the worldwide Sketch Crawl that is going to happen on Saturday March 29th. For more information, you can google Sketch Crawl, or you can go to http://www.sketchcrawl.com/ . It sounds like a really neat idea.

I'm trying to contact some of the artists in this area, and see if anyone is interested in making a day of it. You might like to get together with other artists in your area and see what you can come up with. Or you can just do it on your own. There is no cost involved.

They are trying to get together a special deal on some moleskin sketchbooks, if you want to do that. But it is not required.

My idea is to get a group together who would like to draw that day. Meet somewhere in the morning, then spread out and draw Bryan/College Station (Calvert? Hearne? Franklin? Robertson/Brazos counties? ) during the day. Then have everyone come back together to share. Spectators might even be interested in buying some of those sketches, or the finished work later.

You could post some of those drawings on the SketchCrawl site, your own site, or whatever you might think of.

I thought that it might be something a bit different to do.

Let me know if your are interested, or if you need more information.

And, if you want to join me, let me know.

(No, we don't have to do it as a group. And, no, we don't have to all go to one place and work together, unless we just want to.) I was thinking that there might be a bit of fun as a group, some fellowship and opportunity for a critique or sharing time, and a bit of power, as well as safety, in numbers. It's not always a good idea to be out drawing or painting alone.

We might even get a little publicity, if we get it together in time.

Anyone else interested?

You can click on Czs_Izs03@yahoo.com to get in touch with me.

I put a link to Sketch Crawl on my sidebar under Art Helpers so you can check it whenever you want.

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Good Friday

I did this drawing a while back, thinking of a look of wood carving and German Expressionism. I got my idea from a brown ink drawing that I did while in my room during my first year of college, many years ago. I used sepia ink and an old fashioned dip style drawing pen.

I hope that this is a good Easter season for you and yours. Be mindful of why we are observing this holiday.

There was a time when we searched for weeks, for the perfect Easter outfit, dress, shoes, hat, shoes, socks or stockings, a purse, undies, and even special hankies. We used to get a pastel coat to match our dresses and a sweater, in case it wasn't all that cold that year. Without all the sophisticated weather forecasting that we have now, it was really a dilemma to plan what kind of Easter frock to wear.

Some years, we didn't get the coat or sweater, just the spring frock. And, then, along would come an "Easter Snap", and people would, at the last minute, have to bring out the winter coats and sweaters, which didn't match, or rush from the car to church and back, shivering in a cold wind. We haven't needed those coats or sweaters in quite a few years.

In fact, we haven't needed a pretty dress, hat, or coat in a few years. It hasn't been that cold. (But, it looks like some areas are getting plenty of snow and bad weather this year. Not so here. Fairly warm and very sunny, in these parts.) Some churches are having outdoor services now, and encouraging people to bring blankets to sit on. People just wear jeans or even shorts, to some churches, now. Some do carry out the traditional Easter outfits and church services indoors. A lot of places also have a breakfast following early or sunrise services.

We used to go to the city to shop at Cox's or Jack and Jill for our Easter outfits.

But, at Conitz Dry Goods Store, we also sold hats, dresses, shirts, ties, shoes, ribbon, hankies, lingerie, socks, stockings, and all that people would need for their Easter outfits, and more. The fun part was not so much in helping people find what they needed, but we got to examine all the new merchandise that came in, and get first pick of the new things as we put prices on and organized the items. I could entertain myself for a whole day, looking at the new hats and dresses, and then trying on things in the three way mirror.

Another thing that I loved to do was to decorate the big show windows that faced Highway 6. It was kind of fun to be working in there, and, at the same time, check out the cars that passed through, and wave at some that looked like they might have cute boys or Aggies in them!

By this time, Mama (playing the organ) and the choir at church, were practicing for the big Easter Contata and their special music for Easter Sunday. The Easter ham was bought, along with a roast, and other goodies for a family meal.

My sister and I , and Poochie, our dog, looked forward to an early morning Easter Egg hunt in the park and again in the yard, depending on the weather. On Saturday night, the aroma of ham and pineapple filled the house, along with the smell of vinegar for egg dyeing.

This year will be different. Gas is too high to be traveling anywhere. My last older relative is in a nursing home. One grandson is working. The other is past the Easter Egg hunting as a pre-teen. But he won't turn down some ham or cupcakes and candy! We don't have the big family anymore for a big dinner. But we may have some ham anyway. I hope it is one of those good hams like my mother used to make, with pineapple, and cherries and cloves. I'm not that crazy about ham, but those are good, and my daughter likes to bake them, some years. But, since there are so few of us, we may just have some sliced, cold ham from the grocery store. Tasteless and tough, like salty, greasy cardboard. I would rather have our good old traditional red roast and red gravy.

I lost my liking for pork when I was little and my dad gave my sister and me two of the cutest little black and white pigs that looked like puppies! He built a pen for them out in the country at one of the pastures and we would sometimes go and visit them while he fed cattle or worked on fences. The pigs grew into big black and white "dogs", to us.

Then it got cold and we quit going out to the pasture. We begged to go back and see our pet pigs, but Daddy said it was too cold, or we would make too much noise and make the cows lose weight.

At the table one day, someone mentioned that they were getting tired of all the pork we were having lately. (It could have been me.) I looked at my parents, carefully, when I realized that this was true. We were having sausage, bacon, ham, pork chops, pork roast, an awful lot.

Daddy said he liked it. But I got the sinking feeling about where that pork came from and I pushed my plate back and refused to eat anymore pork.

"Daddy, where is my pig?"

"Daddy, where did this meat come from?"

I got no answer, but I knew. Our pigs were in the freezer at the meat market. We were eating those cute little things. And we never even got to know them very well!

We were at the pasture, climbing on the fence of the empty pig pen, when Daddy asked if we each wanted a calf. We could start our own herd, and save the money for college.

No way was I going to have a calf and know that it was going to be killed and I would be expected to eat it, like the pigs. I insisted that I would stick with my cats. I knew that no one was going to eat those scrawny little things!

My sister gave in and Daddy started her herd.

When time for college came, she had a herd and a bank account. I had lots of cats.

It wasn't until recent years that I could comfortably eat pork. It still isn't my favorite, but I got over thinking of those cute little black and white pigs every time I looked at a piece of ham or a pork chop.

I don't tell that story to my grandsons, though. I just take my piece of ham and act like it is the best thing I have ever eaten.

Hope that you are planning a big weekend with your family and friends.

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What a gorgeous sunset and full moon we are having!

I may have to plant something. My great-aunt always said that you were supposed to plant things on Good Friday and by a full moon.