Friday Night Date

Friday Night Date

8.5" x 11"

pencil

There was a comment on FaceBook today stating that they remembered the days when weekends meant dating and hanging out with friends. I still remember those times, too, although the person reminiscing is a lot younger than I am.

I did this little pencil sketch a while ago, remembering a Friday night date when I was a teenager in Calvert.

A younger girl in our group had a date with a boy from the next town. He didn't have a car. But his friend had a car. The guy with a car was willing to double date, but he didn't have a date. So, the girl asked me if I would like to go. My friends all told me to go. I was a bit hesitant because I was shy, couldn't think of clever conversation, and this was the first boy from out of town, that I had not grown up with, who I would be going out with.

We went to the Eloia to see a movie, which was okay because we didn't really have time to go out of town and be home by 10 p.m. The movie did the talking for us, so we didn't really have to say much. I think he was just about as shy as I was.

So, here we are, in my drawing, sitting in the car after the show, parked in front of the old abandoned movie theatre beside the bank. The sign from the Eloia and the street lights light up the night. Notice that the car is not parallel parked. At that time, our wide Main Street, which was also the highway, allowed cars to just pull in. You can see the other couple in the back seat through the rear view mirror, and their knees on the seat of the car.

My date was really cute , but, as I said, I think he was as shy as I was, so there wasn't much talking. Thankfully, the other girl was lively and talkative, so I just listened. Imagine my surprise when my date leaned over and kissed me! I didn't know what to do! It was a sweet, tender kiss and I almost passed out!

In our little group, we had talked about what to do if a boy tried to kiss you, and how to kiss. But, at this time, I was at a loss as to what to do! What do you do with your nose. And should you let a boy kiss you on a first date. All those big questions that people encounter as they grow up and start to date.

I worried about my manners and felt that I didn't know what to do or order when eating out. And I felt so stupid, waiting for a boy to come around and open my door for me. I thought that I didn't have enough experience at eating out. I was very uncomfortable at this business of dating a stranger. I had dated before, but it was always with the boy I started going out with in elementary school, and had known all my life.

On top of that, what if they didn't like you. Or you didn't like them. Or if you did something stupid like tripping and falling or if you needed to go to the bathroom! And what about the other couple. What if they didn't want to go home yet, and you needed to be at home earlier. So many problems!

Yes, I remember dating and hanging out with friends on weekends and every day. We were a small school in a small community, and most of us grew up together and are still friends. It's sad to think of those who are no longer with us. We did have some good times .

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Congratulations to Kathi Appelt! See her link in my sidebar under Artists and Authors. There was an article about her latest book in "The Texas Observer". See "What The Woods Knew" by Robert Leleyx dated April 3-09 at http://www.texasobserver.org/. Interesting review of her book, "The Underneath".

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Lots of things going on locally tonight. Hope you are involved in some of them.

In downtown Bryan, they are showing the movie "Grease" tonight as part of the First Friday festivitites.

At Rudder Hall on campus, Karl Rove and Juan Williams are appearing. That should be very interesting.

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Monday April 6

National Tartan Day-Wear your tartan! If you don't have one, look in my sidebar and you can find a link to a place where you can design your own tartan. I still like the one that I designed last year on that site.

Brazos Valley Art League-meets at noon at the Art Center in College Station.

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Great News for Stork Watchers!

The storks are back in Poland!!!

Go to my sidebar and see the list of sites under Stork Sites. Mama and Papa stork have returned to the nest where all the babies died from a fungus a couple of years ago. That was so sad! Last year, the adults didn't return to the nest at all. But, now a pair of storks has taken up residence in the nest, and the webcams are working.

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Join us for the 22nd World Wide Sketch Crawl

Saturday April 11, 2009

http://www.sketchcrawl.com/

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Thanks for reading and sharing!

Remember The Alamo

Alamo Ghosts

photo by Joan

Did you see any movies about the Alamo yesterday, or hear any stories on tv, read something in the newspaper, yesterday? I didn't. One person sent me something from YouTube about it by e-mail.

It was 173 years ago that the battle of the Alamo ended. And soon the cry "Remember The Alamo" came about as Texans and others battled for freedom. April 6, 1836 is another day that should be remembered, along with dates like December 7, 1941. But, as time passes, there is less said to honor the people who gave their lives and to help us remember our history.

The photos above were taken at the Alamo a few years ago by my daughter. She and a friend and their children were visiting San Antonio. They heard about a ghost tour that started at the Alamo, and they joined the tour.

The top photo shows tourists, on the right, waiting for the tour to start.

But, when we got the pictures developed, there were other figures on the left. A group that was not there, or at least visible to my daughter and the group.

The photo has faded some, but, when we first got it, you could clearly see several men dressed in the uniforms of the Mexican soldiers, facing toward the center of the picture. They were so clear, that I thought that they must be reenactors, standing near the wall. I thought that there was a man with light brown pants and a white shirt facing them. I don't see that anymore, and, instead, there is a red image on the scan of the photo. I used Quick Fix on this one to try to bring it out a little more, but that just darkened parts of it. You can see slight images of some figures on the left, where the Mexican soldiers seemed to be.

The bottom picture is the same photo, scanned and cropped to eliminate all but the "ghostly" figures. I didn't use the Quick Fix on it.

I wish I had had a scanner and computer when we first had the pictures developed so that we could see the images better now.

I never did get to go in the Alamo, but I drove by it frequently back in the 1960s. I thought it was sad to have built all those buildings around it.

I did, however, stop by Monument Hill at LaGrange a few times, and that was impressive, too.

We certainly should remember the Alamo and all the events and people that went into making our great state-and country.

Remember The Alamo

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I hope that you got to go to First Friday in downtown Bryan last evening, and to the great band concerts at A&M this week, and today. I would have loved to have gone! There was a convention of bands and band directors at A&M this week, with one big concert on Kyle Field this afternoon to culminate activities. The U.S. Navy band and others were included with concerts during the week. What a great experience! Maybe I can go next year.

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If you are going to be in the Austin area Saturday April 11, 2009, be sure to go by Book People's booskstore on 6th & Lamar (603 N. Lamar) to a book signing with Kathi Appelt and Cynthia Leitich Smith. The event is from 1-3 p.m. Bring your friends and family! There will be brief readings, interesting commentary, and signing by both authors.

The event celebrates the success of Kathi's book, a Newberry Award Winner, "The Underneath", and the release of Cynthia's new book, "Eternal".

Please RSVP by 3/22 to help them plan for the event.

cynthia@cynthialeitichsmith.com

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Congratulations to all the winners in the Brazos Valley Art League Show! Included in that group is Jack Holloway from Hearne and Mary Waldson from Gause. I'm especially excited to see that Mary earned both 1st and 2nd place in Non-Professional Oils and Acrylics. Mary was a participant in the first Plein Aire Painting Workshop with V.... Vaughan in Calvert.

If you are in the area, be sure to go by to see the show at the Art Center in College Station.

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If you are in this area, and like to draw or paint, be sure to click on the Join link at the top of my sidebar to join the group I started, Brazos Valley_Sketchers. If you are on Facebook, there is another group there, Brazos Valley Sketchers that you might want to join. I know that we have a lot of people who love art in this area. Lots of teachers and students, professors, professional artists, hobbyists, etc. in this area who would enjoy things like Sketch Crawl, plein aire painting, etc.

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If you haven't joined my group, or added your name to my Followers list, or subscribed to my blog, or even signed my Guest Book at the bottom of my page, it is really easy to do. Please let others know who might be interested.

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Have a great weekend!

Remember the Alamo!

I wonder what people in Texas were thinking and feeling this day in 1836.

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Calvert Bank

Plein Aire Painting on Main Street in Calvert, Texas. Artists Virginia Vaughan and Barbara discuss painting while participants spread out to paint. This is from where I was sitting in a doorway behind me, out of the wind. You can see part of the bank across the street, with the green canopy. I lightened the photo some so the background colors seem to be a bit washed out.

Main Street, Calvert, Texas from Zamykal Kolache Shop. The bank is on the opposite corner from Larry's Place (Dr. Wade's old office). During the Plein Aire Painting Workshop, some people worked on the balcony upstairs, while others worked on the street corner or across the street. I chose to do the bank from the corner view, along with what was once Mack Rembardt's Furniture Store, with the curved metal overhang. This was just one of several banks that we once had in Calvert.

This was my start at painting the bank on location, or en plein aire. I was struggling with a borrowed French easel that I had not used before and couldn't really figure out what to do with my palette. And, of course, I had to stop and visit a while. As we packed up to go paint the sunset, my "helper", got the palette, with wet paint, jammed into the French easel while closing it incorrectly, we learned. So, I lost the colors that I was using at the time, not to mention causing a big problem in trying to get the palette loose.

The shadows were long across the street at that time of day.

I had been interested, for years, in painting the orange bricks of the bank, with the sunset reflecting in the windows. I'm getting closer! I thought that this study might help toward that end , eventually.

I liked my trees and the hints of windows on the bank. I wasn't too happy with the dark sky, though. I would have carried it out, if I had not lost that color when the palette was cleaned. Since I had to start over with color, I tried for a Cerulean Blue sky that we often see in Texas. I liked that much better to keep the painting light. The darker blue worked well for the shadow on the building and the highway.

This was the next phase of the painting that I did at home. I lightened the sky and added some soft clouds, tried to straighten the edges of the buildings , the sidewalk, and the steps. The uneven edges of the street beside the curb bothered me, but I liked what was happening with the bricks and the highway in front of me. I found some photos of the bank because I knew I was going to need to look at something to put in the overhang and all those windows. I think I made the door too wide, and, with my weird vision, I could have sworn that there was a small curve in between the top facade and the top line of building. When I examined the photos, that small curve is not there, so I had to take that out. and work on the white line around the tops of the buildings.

Amost finished. I'm down to using a toothpick to do the tiny details on the painting! I had to really gather my patience to do all those windows! (I don't think I have a lot of patience!)

This part was dry so I could scan it. Since then, I have added a distant oak tree on the right behind the building. And I added some darker green to indicate the letters on the sign and clock. Like the metal scrollwork under the metal awning, I used a toothpick to add the darker green on the sign and the final tree.

I still plan to use some white for letters on the sign-I think. The green needs to dry a bit before I do that.

I decided to leave off the green canopy over the bank entrance. I think that is a more recent addition. For some reason, when I go to Calvert to sketch or paint, I'm trying to capture the buildings as they were-as I remember them. It's really hard to make myself record the buildings as they are-or even look at them as they are today.
When the finished painting is dry, I will post that, too.

This painting is 7" x 9" and was done in oils.

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I hope that you will join us at the next Plein Aire Painting Workshop in Calvert Saturday February 21 and Sunday February 22. Remember that V.... is a finalist for Texas State Artist, so we will be working with one of Texas' outstanding artists.

Let me know if you are interested.

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Congratulations!!!

Local author, Kathi Appelt, has been named as one of the Newberry Award winners for her book, "The Underneath". This is such an honor. You can click on Kathi's name in my sidebar under Artists and Authors, and that will take you to her website.

I'm so thrilled for Kathi!

Kathi was instrumental in getting the BVSCBWI chapter started here. (That's Brazos Valley Society of Childrens Book Writers and Illustrators). The national chapter is SCBWI.

And she has come a long way in her own career as a published author, speaker, and workshop presenter.

She is a very special, fun, and nice lady, too! Continued success, Kathi!

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Froggy Went A Courtin'

FROGGY WENT A COURTIN' (detail)
Image Size 11.5" x 15.5"
Paper Size 12" x 16"
Mixed Media
On an autumn night, when the moon was full, Old Mr. Froggy put on his best overalls and his lace-up boots and rode in his carriage over to the holler where Miss Mousie lived. He met Miss Goldie Frog, his true love who lived near the bog. While fireflies danced around them, and stars twinkled in the sky, they spooned by the light of the harvest moon, all on a Saturday night. He gave to her a flower fair and laid his cheek on her golden hair. His grin was as wide as the sky, and , while her smile was shy, her toes curled up as she looked at him.
And who else did he see in the moonlight, but little Miss Mousie, who came out of her door, and old Mr. Grasshopper, who brought a bouquet of posies. Miss Lady Bug came dressed in her finery, but who should she meet but old Mr. Flea.
This is how I pictured the old song, as Grandma and Grandpa Miles sang it to me when I was a child. I thought that Froggy really needed a girl frog instead of a girl mouse to court. And I thought of him riding on either a horse, or taking a fringed carriage to take Miss Froggy for a moonlight ride. "Why doesn't he just hop over there?" I asked. A frog would hop, not ride a horse or a carriage, in my way of thinking. I guess I made up my own story! Grandma and Grandpa had a hard time teaching me this song, because I had my own idea of how the old story should go.
The image I have shown above is a portion of the top part of the painting. There is more which shows their feet, the other characters, and Miss Mousie's house. I know. there could be more characters, but I thought that these were enough. (After all, Miss Mousie needs a mouse boy friend, Mr. Grasshopper needs a lady grasshopper, and Miss Lady Bug and Mr. Flea need them a date, too.)
The colors in the original are a bit different than the scanned image. The purples, especially, are more interesting in the painting.
I started this one by pressing Dewberries on the paper. These are in the distant trees or brush that appear rust colored. Usually, I get a beautiful purple color by starting a painting with Dewberries. But, this time, unlike the way I usually work, I had to stop and put this one aside for a while, after I did the drawing and applied the berries. By the time I decided to finish the painting, a year later, the purple area appered more brown.
It sort of inspires me to see that lovely Dewberry color on my paper or canvas. The next step is to add some Cobalt Violet paint, then use my yellows and work to my darker purples and blues. With watercolors, you work light to dark, while in oils, it is the opposite.
Someone told me that the acid in the berries would damage the paper, and that the sugar would attract bugs. But I use natural materials sort of like watercolors, or, when I do press the berries on paper, I use water on a brush over it, which dilutes the juices, once it has stained to the color I want. And, I have found that, if these paintings, where I experiment with using different natural materials, are framed and sealed in properly, they will last many years. So far, I haven't seen any show signs of deteriorating. This painting is the only one that has shown even a change in color, and I feel that is because a lighter weight paper (140# Arches, while I have used vellum or 300# watercolor paper in the past for this technique) was used, and it was left untouched for so long. Using the water and other colors with it probably helps. And there have been no bugs, at all.
White acrylic paint was used to make the fireflies show up and for the occasional small highlight.
Once I got into this one, I enjoyed working on it. It just took me so long to get around to it! (I am kind of slow-spend a lot of time thinking about things before I actually do them-, and I get distracted, sometimes. So, be patient. I will get things done, eventually.) I have others that I have painted with the theme of old songs that I remember, including "Big Rock Candy Mountain", and "Row, Row, Row Your Boat". I even have a drawing of Grandpa Miles, baking in our kitchen and singing "Billy Boy", and other old songs.
With cooler temperatures and the arrival of autumn, I've noticed that other artists are posting some fall themed paintings on their blogs and their websites. So, I thought that this one might be kind of fun to show, with a bit of a fall theme.
Hope you enjoy this one, and share it with others .
Please be sure to notice the new artists and authors that I have added, and the new Organizations section. There are also some new things under Eye Sites.
For those interested in Vision Problems, I noticed that there is a website called Don't Lose Sight, and, on that site, actress Jane Seymour has a page as a spokesman. Her mother, who just died this month, had AMD and she tells a very interesting story. I didn't know that Seymour also is an artist. I tried to add a link to those two sites, but they just wouldn't save. So, maybe, if you are interested, you can just do a search for them.
I also had an e-mail from Prevent Blindness America yesterday, concerning legislation to help prevent and treat loss of vision. I did a Google search for HB 3750, the Vision Preservation Act of 2007. Believe me, I contacted my legislators as fast as I could. I just thought that I would pass this on, in case you have an interest.
Also check out BlogRush in my sidebar. They are making updates and improvements in it. If you have your own blog, and want to add that widget to your own blog, know that they are working on the feature.
Thanks for your comments and support.