Winter Robins

Winter Robins with Leaf

9" x 12"

Acrylic on Paper

We used to read about people up north, looking for a Robin Redbreast, the first sign of spring. That was hard to understand because we had robins, sparrows, and other birds, in our yards in Calvert all winter long. I thought about that as I watched Robins, playing around in the yard one winter afternoon.

The grass was brown and gold after winter freezes. We had saved a maroon leaf that had been covered with ice and I added that into my picture.

One large, fat Robin strutted back and forth in the yard and, at one point, nestled down in the dirt in the driveway to splash sand over him with his wings. Another bird appeared and watched the sky over the field across the street. Three fat Robins seemed to compact their bodies and whiz low over the road. They looked a bit like jets going past.

My scanner doesn't take 9" x 12" paper without cutting off part of the image, so this is a detail of the painting.

I used a limited palette of Gamboge, purple, and a bit of Indian Red for this picture. The paper is 65 # Canson acid free paper.

I'm sure that there are places that are ready to see the return of the Robins.

Here, we would be happy if we could get some gentle rain, along with the cloudy, windy, cold days. Snow would be nice, too, but I guess it may be too late in the winter for that. Sometimes February is cold, but, in recent years, the pear and other trees have started blooming in February.

I wonder when we will see Bluebonnets this year. They may not be so large this year, since we are behind on rainfall.

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Here is an interesting article to read about Virginia Vaughan, who will be coming to Calvert Feb. 21. This appeared in "Country Lifestyle". http://www.countrylifestyle.net/node/227.

Don't forget to reserve your place in the class. You can contact me, or Sonny Moss in Calvert, for more information. We would like to have reservations in by Feb. 1. If you are interested, let me know.

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Are you up on your shots or vaccinations? Who would have thought that, those of us who had all the childhood diseases, on schedule, and had the right immunizations when we were growing up, would now need shots! Although you may have had Chicken Pox and thought that was behind you, now we find out that, your immunization is probably no longer any good, and you need a shot to prevent a form of Chicken Pox-Shingles.

Ask Barbara. She will tell you to get up to date on your shots!

As I was flipping through tv channels last night, I saw part of a discussion about this.

On our local tv, and on the panel discussion, they said that older people also need to get the Whooping Cough shot and a Pneumonia shot, as well as a Flu shot each year.

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If you are in this area and are interested in family history and preservation, look for an announcement with more information about a program on "Archiving History". Susie Cox, Curator at the George Bush Library, will be the presenter. The date is Feb. 12. There should be more information about this sometime this week, according to Cindy Peaslee of the Downtown Bryan Association.

Watch for their events announcements about what is going on in Bryan.

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Look in my sidebar for information about upcoming events of the Brazos Valley Art League. Spring is always a busy time of year for artists. You can also look on their website. You can Google it, or you can click on the links in my sidebar under Events, and Organizations.

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It was sad to hear that we lost another schoolmate from Calvert High School last week. I had just wished Walter a speedy recovery on my blog, when I learned that he had died. I know that he will be missed terribly.

Walter made the lives of so many people richer. He was a strong supporter of the Trojans and Calvert High, and was the force behind the Calvert School Reunion, for one thing.

Of course, I remember him most from the days when we were students at Calvert High.

The family has been hit especially hard since Walter's younger brother, Charles, died only months ago.

Our deepest sympathies go out to this family.

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Cedar Fever, upper respiratory problems, sinus trouble, viruses, all seem to be going around. I've been sneezing with runny eyes, can't get my breath, dizzy, etc. The OTC allergy medicine didn't do anything, so I resorted to taking some Benadryl, which knocks me out, or makes me so sleepy I could just fall over! That stops most of the sneezing. I was going to paint some, but I think I may have to take a nap, instead. I hate to do that since it may keep me up tonight.

Did you ever see anyone sleep on the keyboard of their computer? I think I could do that, now.

I have dozed off and jumped up before my nose hit the keyboard, in the past.

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Happy Days / Sad Days

Top Photo

Happy Birthday, Thelma!

Bottom Painting

They're so Pretty in Calvert

16" x 20"

Acrylic

It's a sad time, and a happy time.

First, the happy time is because of birthdays. Happy Birthday to Thelma today. Her picture is above from back in the 1940s. I remember those jodphurs! Irvin's birthday would have been this week, too. Lots of birthdays and holidays close together in this family.

It's a sad time because several people have died.

Last weekend, we lost Kathy Staff, who played Nora Batty on "Last of the Summer Wine", one of my favorite programs. I loved watching Nora and the ladies having coffee, and even Nora's hats and wrinkled stockings. The program has some lovely scenery in England, soothing, cheerful music, and some fun characters. The characters remind me of Calvert. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7782250.stm .

Next, I learned of the death of one of our classmates, Walter. I have such great memories of the times when we were all growing up in Calvert. It is always so hard to lose our classmates, since we spent so much time together in our small class . I looked at my classmates, more like brothers and sisters, especially since I didn't have brothers.

I think that you could compare some of our lives to that in the movies, "The Little Rascals" and "Our Gang". I heard a historian say that he grew up like in those movies. I thought, "I did too!"

My deepest sympathies to Walter's family. I'm sure that this is a very sad time for them.

I also learned of the death of another CHS graduate, Keen. He was a little older than I am, but I remember him in a sailor suit, and a picture of him in his sailor suit that his mother had. My mother and his mother visited a lot. His mother was so proud of him. I remember his dad, too. I found the obituary in the Waco Tribune Herald online this morning.

I thought I might draw an angel for Walter, but it wasn't happening. Instead, I started a sketch of the time that Walter and Taylor were sitting on the front row in Mrs. Brannon's English class. I can't remember who else was sitting on that row. I am thinking that Alfred was on the end by the windows. I remember that both boys had watches that seemed really large on their wrists. Mrs. Brannon got really mad about our class giggling about something, or talking, or making noise, that day. I can't remember exactly what it was. I do recall that we did all kinds of things to not have to read what we thought were embarrassing passages, and, if anyone did consent to read those things, they were "giggled at", and either blushed or rushed through it so fast you could barely understand what they said. Some of those embarrassing literary works included "Macbeth" and "Romeo and Juliet". They were pretty risque in places. We were so naieve.

The class, especially the boys, since they were bolder and there were more of them, were having trouble being nice, quiet, serious students that day. Mrs. Brannon had enough and had warned us a few times. She may have even already sent someone to the office.

The silliness happened again. Mrs. Brannon walked over to the blackboard, gripped her yardstick in her hand, and pursed her lips. She swung that yardstick over the heads in the first three rows! Everyone ducked, and that just made the boys giggle that much more. Eventually, they stopped when they realized that Mrs. Brannon was really angry. Those of us further back, ducked, too! We didn't know what might happen! That yardstick could fly over and hit us too, we imagined. And we didn't know how long Mrs. Brannon's reach was.

Despite the yardstick overhead, those boys still just looked at each other and grinned. The teacher's obvious anger, didn't subdue them a lot.

Mrs. Brannon had used the yardstick to shake at us before, but she had never swung it over our silly heads before. I'm sure that some of us were not acting up to begin with. We always behaved ourselves, in fear, if nothing else. We sure didn't want a trip to the office, but some of the boys didn't seem too upset when they were sent. They probably quit giggling when the board hit their pants! It didnt' happen often, of course.

My little sketch has started out with Taylor and Walter, and their big watches, with Mrs. Brannon looming over them with a yardstick extended. I'm not happy with the drawing, though. I was having a lot of trouble connecting lines, etc. I think it is because I was working too small in a sketchbook. And I have Mrs. Brannon really huge compared to the boys and the desks! Doesn't look like her at all!

Now, you have to know that Mrs. Brannon was a sweet lady, not inclined to violence at all. And an excellent teacher. And we knew that we had to behave in all our classes, including English. I don't think that she ever paddled, but she would send any unruly student to the office. And they would take care of things, there. Supposedly, the offender got more of the same, or worse, at home.

Instead of an angel, I am sharing an acrylic painting I did of some robed figures. They are standing in the street beside what was Conitz Dry Goods Store on Main Street, at night, after most people had gone home for the day. They are looking up, excited by the beautiful lights in the sky. UFOs? Angels?

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Keep in mind the 21st World Wide Sketch Crawl Saturday January 10. Want to come draw, paint, journal, or even doodle with us? Let me know, or get with a group where you are. Or, you can even start your own group. See the website for more information. http://www.sketchcrawl.com/ Or you can just click on the logo in my sidebar, and that will take you to the site. Look under 21st sketch crawl, then under Forums to find a group near you. Or just groups that are in interesting places.

This time, you can order a t-shirt with the logo and a cute pencil on the sleeve. It isn't required, since the Sketch Crawl is free, but it is just something different to wear. Those are available through the website.

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Speaking of t-shirts, look on Virginia Vaughan's blog and see some of the neat t-shirts that she has designed. You can order those through her, too. http://www.vvaughan.blogspot.com/

Also, look at the information about the workshop she is doing in Calvert February 21. She has more on her website at http://www.v-vaughan.com/ . You can contact me at grannyc_54@yahoo.com for a supply list and information.

Please share with others who might be interested.

This workshop will be on Saturday, and she will still be there, to paint with the group on Sunday morning. She won't be teaching on Sunday, but we will be painting for fun. So, if you aren't local, you might want to make plans to stay for at least one night.

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While you are thinking of sending out Christmas wishes, you might keep in mind our wrongly imprisoned border agents, Jose Compean and Ignacio Ramos. And their families.

If you are so inclined, you might call the White House (202)456-1111,and the Office of the Pardons Attorney (202)616-6070 and your senators, (For us, it is Hutchison and Cornyn) and do what you can to get those men released. Those in power should not be having such a fancy Christmas as long as these men are being held the way they are. If they can pardon a turkey, drug dealers and other criminals, then why not these men who never belonged in prison to begin with. We hope that these men and their families will be able to have a great Christmas together.

You can send cards and letters to Ramos and Compean, too. There is also an organization called Grassfire that is trying to free them.

Foxes and The Tree

Foxes and the Tree

30" x 40"

Acrylics on Vellum

The moon was still up in the west while the sun was rising in the east as I drove to work on highway 6. On this particular morning, as I passed by "the tree", there seemed to be a family of foxes romping through the grass. Their brown backs and tails arched almost like waves as they ran across the field. The stump from the tree's "friend" was still visable. The red wooden gate that opened to the pasture was colorful and welcoming against the golden color of the fall grass.

Years ago, there were two trees left on this hill. We used to drive past on our way between Bryan and Hearne, after the new highway was completed. Prior to the new highway, the road passed a little to the east in front of an old fashioned filling station, then curved back to go across a creek bottom and under the railroad bridge. After some bad wrecks, the highway department decided to straighten out some curves in highway 6, which then took us closer to the tree on the hill.

We were surprised when we saw that one tree had been struck by lightning. The stump remained and the burned tree lay across it for years. Eventually, the burned tree disappeared and the stump shrunk into the grass. But that one tree remained.

"The Tree" became a landmark to watch as I drove back and forth to work, home, shopping. "Where are you?" My daughter would ask on the cell phone. "I'm just coming to the tree," I would answer.

The tree looked like it was stretching, or about to run or dance. Sometimes it seemed sad, there, all alone, without a friend. (If you ever watch Bob Ross or William Alexander paint, you will see that they add a tree, then give it a "friend".) Sometimes, it seemed weak and about to die in times of drought. There were times when it appeared to be fearful, when grass and forest fires threatened, especially from the railroad just across the highway, or from passing cars that threw out cigarettes.

I imagine that, once, this land was covered with trees, like the land below the hill before someone wanted more pasture land, or the railroad and highway came through. I wonder who decided which tree to leave and why. I'm sure that they never would have guessed that their decision to leave that tree would bring attention and pleasure to people in our time.

I passed by this tree so much that I made a little rhyme to pass the time and to help me to relax a bit.

"Good Morning, Tree!

Watch after me.

And be my friend.

I surely need a friend today!"

And going home,

"Goodnight, Tree!

I'm going home now.

Keep your roots deep

And your branches strong."

That's all there was time for as I whizzed past. But, it made me laugh, sometimes. I guess it was therapeutic.

We debated about what kind of tree it is. I always thought it was an oak tree. But a bus driver when we were on a field trip, told me that she thought it is a pecan tree. I never was close enough to it to look at the leaves.

Now, the red gate is gone, replaced by a metal one. A huge metal barn of a building by the railroad tracks has been built, spoiling the view across the highway from the tree. I just try to look toward the tree and not at that ugly building when we drive past. Some kind of company built it and bulldozed the land there. The old fillling station could still be seen, from the back, as it was at the fork of the old and new highway. An old house was behind the station, further up the hill. For years, trees and vines pushed the old house over, and sometimes covered it. I couldn't see them the last trip there and hope that they haven't been bulldozed, too. At least, I do have photos, and memories of them.

In the spring, the hill is covered with Bluebonnets, followed by Indian Paintbrushes, then Black Eyed Susans and tiny white and blue flowers that are common, but I don't know the names. Soon after the yellow flowers, the Highway Department and landowners mow before everything is too dry, in case of wildfires. This time of year, the grass is still green, cattle graze on the hill, while the 18 wheelers and other traffic race past on the curve. Sometimes loads in the trucks shift as trucks navigate the hill and the curve, and over the trucks go.

This size painting is a small one, to me. I really prefer to work large. To others, it would appear to be huge at 30" x 40".

I've done this tree several sizes, in different media from memory and from photos.

When you are rushing between Bryan and Hearne, take a little time to notice "The Tree". Smile and say "Hello" or "Goodnight". I'll bet that you will soon pay attention to more trees and landscape, and it will put you in a little better mood.

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Entries for the Brazos Valley Art League Fall Juried Show

are due at the P. David Romei Art Center tomorrow from 10-2.

Judging is Oct. 4 followed by the opening reception

See their website at

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First Friday in Downtown Bryan

Friday Oct. 3

Art, Music, Entertainment, A movie, Fun, Food

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Sign Up For

Plein Aire Painting Workshop in Calvert

with Virginia Vaughan

http://www.v-vaughan.com

http://www.vvaughan.blogspot.com

Saturday Oct. 18

Deposit due Oct. 11

Contact

Cecelia at grannyc_54@yahoo.com

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Plan to Participate in the

20th World Wide Sketch Crawl

Saturday October 25

http://www.sketchcrawl.com

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Enjoy

the Victorian Tea, Gala, and Street Fair

in Calvert

Saturday October 4.

Click on the link in my sidebar for pictures and information.

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New Year's Eve

I haven't posted in a few days. I've been working on a picture in colored pencil and I was having some trouble with it. It's kind of slow going because you are working with the small pencil point and you can't just color something. You have to build layers of color, then blend, to smooth it out, with white. I had a little trouble picking out the colors in my containers. I have them all sorted so they are easy to find. (I thought!) However, at night, I couldn't find the white, light blue, cream, or the flesh colors. So, I switched colors. Hopefully, with more layering and blending, I am going to be more satisfied with it. Maybe it is just me! I envisioned my main figure in a light blue outfit with a white scarf. But, I ended up with turquoise, green, peacock blue, and turquoise and white in her scarf. Maybe I will be more satisfied with it when it is finished.

Note that I have added a new link to an artist in my More Artists section on the sidebar. William Hessian has a blog on bearded bunnies that he creates, which reminded me of the flower pot bunnies that my students made. (See the post below with instructions and pictures).

Scroll all the way down to the bottom of my page to see my guest book, if you haven't already.

Night Lights

Acrylic on Paper

Confetti In The Dark

Acrylic on Paper

I have posted the above paintings before in my Vison postings. These are some of the things I saw last January when I got my injection of Lucentis in my eye for wet Macular Degeneration. I thought that it looked like a parade at night, or a celebration. The fireworks are actually the way that I see various outdoor lights. Appropriate for New Years Eve.

We don't usually have a big celebration. We just watch tv, maybe a movie on tv, until midnight. Then we have champagne or egg nog, and maybe a little snack and the kids throw confetti. They go out on the porch and throw "poppers" down, which make a noise like firecrackers. Safe and no fire that way! (We've had to be careful about fire due to drought conditions in recent years, although this year we are okay. )

Then, we go to bed. Well, the family does, and I watch tv, do some art work, or work on the computer.

When I was growing up in Calvert, we didn't really celebrate New Years Eve. We watched tv, drank Coca Cola, or, if it was cold, Daddy told my mother to make some hot chocolate. One year, we discovered hot Dr. Pepper with a little lemon in it and tried that when it was cold. We might have crackers with peanut butter or cheese or a marshmallow on top, which Mama put in the oven to toast. Daddy also liked to roast peanuts on a pan in the oven, or have pecans, and spend the evening cracking and eating them while we watched tv.

Daddy always wanted us in bed early so he could sleep. He would stay up to watch the news, and that was the celebration.

Night owl that I was, I would lay in the bed and wait to see the magical changes that would occur with the arrival of a new year. Would the New Year Baby come floating in from the skies and the Old Year float up to the sky, never to be seen again? Would the world come to an end? Would we all feel a difference? Above all, would I be different after midnight?

I waited, sometimes with my heart pounding, anxious to see what midnight might bring, and a little afraid that it would be something really bad and scarey.

At midnight, the deep knoll of a bell rang out across the neigborhood. Charlie, on the corner, had an old bell from a school out in their yard, and, at midnight, that bell would welcome in the new year. Somewhere in town, we could hear firecrackers popping, and, sometimes, a few left- over- from- Christmas Roman Candles would burst above the trees. Dogs in the distance began barking and howling, sending communication across town, and our own dog would join in until the fireworks were silent again.

My sister slept, my parents slept, but I was wide awake, thinking that we should be doing something.

"Daddy! Did you hear that?" I demanded. Charlie rang the bell. It's midnight! The new year!" I went into my parents' room and tried to wake them. Other people were up. We should be, too.

"Okay," my mother said sleepily, and turned over.

"Get back in bed!" Daddy said and began his earth shattering snoring again.

I couldn't sleep with all that snoring, anyway, and I had to look outside to make sure that our neighborhood was still okay. I sat up in bed, looking out the window.

The neighborhood was still there, but would it be in the morning? I looked toward the park, where there were street lights throwing a soft glow at each corner. And at the street light on the corner by Edie's house. Sometimes I could see cats stalking their prey of bugs around the street light. An occasional dog would pass by, or even a fox that wandered in from the country.

I could imagine older men and ladies out dancing, going places in cars, eating fabulous food in magnificent settings. People on trains and buses going through town, bound for somewhere. Couples were probably snuggling together somewhere. People would be going to movies or wandering along window shopping. Some would be wearing beautiful clothes to parties in beautiful homes. Champagne would flow and fireworks would explode in the air. Some people would take their children out to set off fireworks to welcome in the new year, others might be in church. There were even people who had pretty mixed drinks or egg nog with actual nog in it. So much was going on in the world, and here we were, in our beds, in the dark.

I lined up my baby dolls, covered them, and cuddled one in my arms. One of the cats would wander by and curl up beside me or walk leisurely across the window sill as I watched.

"One of these days, I'm going to grow up and I am not going to bed early! I'm going to be out there where life is happening!" I vowed in a whisper to my doll and my cat. I didn't want to wake Daddy and have him yell at me to go to sleep again.

The cooing of Mourning Doves that made their home in the park and the cemetery, began about the time the sky lightened and turned pink in the east. About time for me to go to sleep.

Yes, the world was still all there, I was still the same person as was everyone else. I hadn't seen a baby floating in the air down to earth, or an old man floating up to the sky. We had not experienced a fiery end to the earth as they had talked about in Sunday School.

The street lights on the corner turned off. Cars started to be heard around town. Mama got up and went into the kitchen to make coffee and start breakfast for Daddy. Soon Daddy would be at the table, in his underwear, ready for a big plate of food.

I remember one memorable New Years Eve, after I was grown and had returned home. My cousin, Doris, loved to go dancing, and so did I. She was a young widow and I was divorced. We decided that we were going to go out and celebrate, for a change, and dance. So, we dressed up.

I left my children with my mother, and she left her's with a neighbor. I had a big Oldsmobile 98 (great car!) and we took that. I depended on her to navigate and tell me where the dance halls were. She usually went dancing with a group of ladies. But they all had plans this New Years Eve.

We drove west to a big dance hall in an area that I was not familiar with. As the evening progressed, there were too many people there. You couldn't dance for all the people crowded together and there were no places to sit. Some were already tipsy and loud.

"Do you want to try somewhere else?" she asked.

"Sure. This is terrible!" I said. And we left.

By now, it was dark, but still a warm evening.

As I drove, mist started to form and it seemed hazy. I turned on the defroster. It wasn't inside, but outside on the windshield. Fog was rolling in, rapidly. We aren't on the coast, so I thought that was odd. I could understand rain, or cold, or even snow, but not fog this time of year.

Soon, I couldn't see the road and we were trying to remember strategies for driving in fog! I tried to guide the car by looking at the stripe beside the car, or the side of the road. Doris couldn't see either and I was depending on her to navigate.

Finally, we saw a sign that said "Bryan", or we could take another turn and go home, by way of a country road that we weren't familiar with and where we knew there would be no lights or businesses along the way.

"If we go to Bryan, we can go dancing there. Or, we can just get on Highway 6 and go home." Doris told me. She couldn't think of another good place to dance that we would be able to find.

We headed for Bryan. At least there would be lights in town and more cars on the highway. If worst came to worse, we could get a room and spend the night at a motel there.

We went creeping along, looking at the edge of the highway. We got to Bryan about midnight, which we heard about on the radio.

"I can't afford a room," I told her.

"I can't either, " she said.

"Should we try to make it home?" I asked. My hands were sweating from nervousness as I tried to drive. I was holding my breath a lot!

"If you want to try it, we might as well go home. It's past midnight, anyway. These places are more expensive and some require reservations. I just hoped that we could find a good place to dance," she advised.

We turned north to go home, driving past several dancing places, where people were leaving. We were disappointed. I thought of the few dollars I had with me, enough to buy one or two drinks, if I could find something really cheap, and a small cover charge, if there was one. I could use that money, but we had missed out on the evening that we had hoped for.

As we left the city and drove into the dark stretch of highway, the fog cleared, and we could see stars. We could also see the highway clearly and sped home.

"Well, at least we got out of the house tonight, "Doris said as she got out of the car. "See you later."

" Yep, we sure did. See you. " I said as she closed the door.

There were other times, of course, when there were dates and dancing, parties, or even sadness and lonliness.

Another year, when I was grown, and back at home, a family moved to town from another state. They invited lots of people from town to come to their house for a party. We had lots of older people in town and not many young people, so the crowd was definitely mature and sort of settled. Some had traveled around, and had lived other places, so they were not so set on gong to bed when there was a party. There was much merriment and food, along with talk about the town and its ways, during the evening.

By midnight, people were full of good food, and talked of getting their coats and going home.

"Oh, no! You're not going yet, "our host exclaimed. "We have to see the New Year in!"

So, everyone stayed.

At midnight, Charlie's bell rang from his yard, firecrackers began to pop around town, and dogs began barking.

"Y'all come out on the porch. We've got to do something to see the New Year in!' Our host and hostess ushered us all out to the wide front porch.

Suddenly, the host pulled out a pistol and aimed it into the trees. He was smiling.

"Oh my God! These strangers are going to kill us all, right here at the Methodist Parsonage!" I thought.

"What are you going to do with that gun?" one of the elderly women asked.

"You can't shoot that in town," a man announced.

"Sure. We do it all the time back home," the host said. "How else would you make noise at midnight!"

"I've never heard of such a thing, " one Sunday School teacher said in her school teacher voice.

Everyone but the host and hostess agreed with her. You didn't shoot guns in town unless you were the law. Or if there was a mad dog, a snake, or some critter that you had to protect yourself from. Men had 22s or rifles that they took out to the country when they worked cattle and their land, in case they had to shoot a wolf or coyote or a wild dog that might attack the livestock. The city policemen had pistols, the Texas Ranger had a pistol, Highway Patrolmen had pistols and other guns, but most ordinarly people kept their guns put away at home, if they had a gun. Daddy had a 22 in the closet, but he had cattle and went out into the country. Grandpa and my great-uncle had a shotgun at the store. Grandpa had used it in the days when he went hunting. One time, the store was broken into and the shotgun was stolen. The police recovered the gun but it had been sawed off. They still kept it in case they ever needed it for protection. They never used it, though.

"Someone could get hurt," her neighbor said.

"Nah," the host said as he aimed the pistol at different places above the trees that lined the sidewalk.

I just smiled, ready to run inside if bullets started flying, not wanting to appear like I was afraid. I didn't really know these people. No one did. Who knows but what they might be murderers or some kind of nuts, or even just plain careless. I was sure that fleeting thought was wrong and just a wild imagination, there in the dark. I just hoped that the policeman would not come up there and fuss at us, or give us tickets, for shooting a gun in town.

Our host aimed the pistol once again and pulled the trigger this time. There was a bang and the bullet just disappeard. It didn't appear to hit anything. We were all under cover of the porch, so, if the bullet fell back down, it didn't fall in our direction.

Okay, he had that out of his system and we could all go home now. We went back in the house, with no one hurt, except our nerves a bit. We gathered our things from the bedroom and left.

"Nice party. Thanks." People left, politely, going back to their usual quiet lives without guns.

"I hope they don't ever do that again!" I told my mother when I got back home. The party was okay, but I never heard of shooting off a gun instead of fireworks. I thought I heard that was dangerous. Those bullets can fall back down and hit someone."

I wondered if that was really a custom back in their home, which happened to be where my mother's mother was from. My mother didn't know.

Daddy was celebrating again with much snoring in the bed and she would soon join him .

I would go to bed, look at my sleeping child, and watch out the window for the new year coming in, the old year floating up to the sky, and hope that this would not be the night that they talked about in Sunday School. The lights still shone from the corner by the park, the cats still sought bugs under the light, dogs barked, spreading their message around town. Lights from trains still could be seen coming over the hill from Hearne, and there would be sounds of distant cars, trucks, and buses on the highway going through town. When the sky turned light and pink in the east, and the Mourning Doves began to coo in the park, the new day and the new year would be there, and it would be time to sleep. Just like in other years.

This would be a good night to enjoy the end of 2007, but also to reflect and look forward. A time to start a new journal, make out New Years Resolutions, after going to a good party or dance.

We always have taken down our Christmas decorations and made sure the tree was out of the house before midnight on New Year's Eve to avoid bad luck in the coming year. This year, the decorations are down. But, I put the little tree back in the window, added a string of lights to the window sill, and turned them on this afternoon. I'll be sure that they are put away before midnight, but I like to enjoy all the color of Christmas as long as possible. It's so drab and sad when all those colorful things are gone after Christmas. I can see why some people leave their things up all year, and why those little white lights have become so popular in decorating.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

(Throwing a little confetti your way. Since it is e-mail confetti, it won't be so hard to clean up! And my "fireworks" are exploding above, silently.)

Don't forget to see my guest book at the end of the page, and to join my Google Group if you haven't already done so.

Thanks for reading and sharing. Have a safe, and happy evening.

Let me know if you see something of interest.

Madonna and Child

Madonna and Child

Sculpture Idea

8" x 10"

Acrylic on Paper

The full moon shines on a cold winter night, like tonight, casting cool light and shadows on stone. Perhaps in a cemetery? A park? Or even floating in the night?

I thought of this piece as a rounded stone, carved just enough to hint at a mother holding a baby. Or, possibly, it could be done in clay with just a hint of blue glaze to give it the feeling of cold moonlight falling over it.

I like to do sculpture, with my hands, touching the clay and modeling it by feel. I haven't tried to carve in stone but I don't think that I would like it as much as I do the soft clay. That's funny because, before I started doing some clay heads, I hated getting my hands, and everything else, dirty. I think that it really helped me to be able to get better form into my two dimensional work.

Creating those large heads of 25 to 50 pounds of clay was an exciting project. Unfortunately, my strength has waned, and I can't do all the lifting and pounding required to work clay, and I no longer have access to a kiln. So, I have to think in terms of something smaller like papier mache, or some sort of other material. I have quite a few ideas for sculpture that I would like to complete, one of these days.

Since it is now Christmas Day, I thought that my "Madonna and Child", with a moonlit night, would be appropriate to share. On Christmas Eve, my youngest grandson and I watched the full moon rise, and he was excited to spy a planet that he had been hearing about. I'm not sure it it was Mars or Saturn as I had not heard about it.

When I painted this, I thought of the old cemetery where my son, and much of my family is buried. A beautiful park-like place near the home that I grew up in. I thought of monuments in the moonlight, over the lawn where so many now rest. A place that is still and quiet, except for the occasional rustling in the branches of ancient trees as night creatures prowl about.

We took our Mock Stained Glass Windows over to the nursing home and showed them to my aunt Christmas Eve afternoon. The sun was pouring in through the big windows in the dining room where we opened our gifts and enjoyed cookies and cold drinks. As we were holding them up to the light, I discovered that, by placing the angel over the star window, I had a completely different, and very interesting design. The rays from the star and the overlapping colors and shapes broke the angel design down even more and created more colors. That was kind of fun. My grandson didn't want to leave the windows there, so we brought them home. My aunt doesn't have a window in her room, so she wouldn't be able to enjoy the window. There isn't enough room to even hang all her Christmas cards, so I guess the windows are going to go in my own windows, or they may go in with all the other things that I am saving, created by my grandson.

Today we will have Christmas dinner with red roast and red gravy and a small ham. My daughter is cooking. She baked an orange cake and a chocolate cake for dessert last night. The orange cake still will not come out of the Bundt pan! We may have to put icing on it in the pan, and dig it out with a spoon! I thought sure that gravity would eventually take care of it, so it is still upside down on a plate. We both tried using knives to loosen the sides, but it is still stuck. I think it is a little too sticky. It seems done inside, according to the toothpick test, but, to touch it, it is really sticky.

Then the grandsons will open their gifts and we will all go back to see my aunt at the nursing home for the afternoon.

It is so different from the Christmases of the past, with a large family around. We always wanted more children around, though, since my sister and I were the children. We couldn't wait to get out and play with our friends.

My family had the dry goods store, and other men in the family had grocery stores. They stayed open as late as there were customers on the street. As the years passed, that time became earlier and earlier, so that, by supper time, the stores were closed and everyone came to our house for the Christmas tree. People came to town to buy, even in wagons, and they stayed around to socialize or to go to church the next day.

When I was growing up, the family worked at the stores on busy days. Even the kids helped out. And other people were hired to help wait on customers. We had to cashier, wait on customers, put things on the books, gift wrap, stock, put price tags on merchandise, decorate the show windows, sweep, dust, clean the restrooms, and watch for shoplifters. My favorite things were to decorate the show windows and to gift wrap. But, it was a little nerve shattering, being told to not use too much ribbon or too much tape, or paper, or string on packages. I was interested in creating a really nice looking package, but some customers just wanted their packages fast and didn't care if they had fancy ribbons or not. We made a kind of a loop out of ribbon and taped it, with a card on top. Another method was to make something that looked a bit like a man's tie, to me. And there were several strips of ribbon brought from the back side to the front, the cut in points at different lengths. Those were good for stacking on top of each other, or for mailing. And then there were bows. We didn't have to make most of them, we bought them in a big package. Or, each year, at our Christmas tree, we all saved our bows and paper to be used again at the store.

After the stores closed, a weary crew went to our house to have the family Christmas tree. It was really hard to wait for Santa, when it got to be really late. But, the store came first. Once everyone gathered, Santa made his way from the garage to the front porch with any special gifts, like bikes or wagons, or doll buggies and little tables and chairs. "Look what Santa left out here!" Daddy would tell us. "I thought I heard him!" he would add.

"I heard him, too!" others would say, trying to make us believe.

One Christmas, Santa brought my sister the pair of cowboy boots she always wanted. We were still pretty small then. My sister would not take off her cowboy boots, for days, and even slept in them, and I wouldn't move my dolls over. We shared a three quarter size bed, so it was pretty crowded in bed. And, then, the cats joined us! But, those cowboy boots. I can feel them still. They had sharp pointed toes, and were really stiff, especially in my back! She loved those boots!

We usually got things like underwear from the store, and a thread box with dollar bills in it. (No fancy wrapping for the family. But, they didn't have time to shop, they said, and so they just put the money into an empty thread box, and gave that out while presents were being passed out.) Mama, and one great-aunt always made sure that we got some nice clothes, toys, and books.

While the great-aunts were receiving things like jewelry, or furniture, or pieces to their crystal, china, or silver patterns, Daddy gave my mother gifts that just upset her. She just clenched her teeth, and held her little presents, and everyone said that he should be ashamed of himself. Of course, he laughed and thought it was so funny. He gave gifts like a Lady Gillette double edge razor and a slop jar. You may remember that happened in "All In The Family" on tv, when Archie Bunker gave Edith her own razor. Well, my dad did it years before that! His sense of humor.

The men all got things like pajamas, shirts, ties, cuff links and tie clasps-things that stayed in their boxes and were saved. Long after they died, we are still finding boxes of things that were gifts that were saved. One thought was that they would save the good things in case they should ever have to go to the hospital.

At our family Christmas tree, we would always have some sort of refreshments, cookies, cake, tuna fish sandwiches and potato chips, and, if it was cold, Mama would make hot chocolate. In later years, when you could buy it in the store, we added egg nog to the menu. One year, my great-aunt, who lived across the street, brought over some Mogan David wine in her mother's lead crystal decanter. Her sister in law had served them wind during a visit, and she wanted to do the same. The other great-aunt acted shocked. Everyone refused the wine except my uncle and I. We asked my grandmother if she wanted some wine and we thought she said she did. However, Grandma was deaf and had hardening of the arteries. When she came to the Christmas tree that night, all she wanted to do was to go home because her babies were there. She couldn't figure out that her children were grown and were there with her. My aunt had said not to give her any refreshments because it might have sugar in it, or salt, and she had read that those things were bad for people. So, she went around making sure that no one ate anything that had the bad things in it. We learned to pass the sugar and the salt under the table, so she wouldn't see us, and throw a fit. My uncle said that we should let Grandma have a little wine, so he kept my aunt busy while my great-aunt and I gave her a tiny wine glass full of wine. When my aunt discovered us, we told her that it was grape juice, and she was satisfied with that. Grandma kept wanting more of those little glasses of wine. Pretty soon, she perked up, and was talking normally, and enjoying herself. She recognized her children and was more lucid than she had been in a long time. The lack of sugar and salt had actually hurt her, and she ended up having to go to the hospital and getting IVs to put some of those things back. My aunt never would concede that people need some salt and some sugar.

Sometimes, on Christmas Day, we would drive to my mother's parents to have Chirstmas dinner with them. It didn't seem right to be away from home, and the family that I was accustomed to on Christmas. And I was eager to share with my friends what we had received for gifts on Christmas Eve.

There was a little longing for a fireplace for Santa to come down, the custom of opening presents on Christmas morning, and a big, roasted goose on a platter for Christmas dinner. Instead, we got Santa bringing gifts to our front porch, having the Christmas tree after the store closed, and turkey and red roast and red gravy for Christmas dinner.

Merry Christmas! And I hope that you are having a wonderful, memorable time with friends and family!

Be sure to look at my guest book. Scroll all the way to the bottom of the page to find it.

If you haven't read yesterday's post, you might like to read it, including a poem by Elaine Winters.

Let me know if you see something of interest to you. Thanks for reading and for sharing.

Holiday Craft Project-Flower Pots Part 2

I started these to send to Lisa, who is substituting for art. I couldn't just tell her, so I thought that, maybe some pictures might help. I decided that the best way to get them to her was through my blog. And, maybe, they will help her and her students, and, at the same time, share what worked for me with others who might be looking for something to do with their own students or children. Adults can do these too. I found that most levels can do the same things, but just a bit differently or, perhaps, with a little different group of materials or time limits. I hope that these help.
I couldn't get my pictures to add on the first post on this project, so I'm trying again in a separate post. Instructions were in the first part. These are some examples of what we did. Remember that these were done at Easter time, but you can adapt these for a Christmas theme. I have decided that these would make some interesting wise men, or shepards, angels, or other characters.

The picture on the left shows a flower pot bunny, nestled in Easter grass, along with the plastic buckets that I used for storing my acrylic paints. I liked to sort them by red, yellow, blue, neutrals, metallics, and specialty paints. In case someone forgot to close the lids, I hoped that this would keep the paint from drying out quickly. I also used them to keep trim, scissors, pencils, crayons, oil pastels, and for use when larger water containers were needed.

The picture on the right, shows one approach in which the pots were painted brown, then details painted in.

The picture on the left shows how the pots were stacked and the top pot used as a head. This one was painted with a cartoon look.

This photo shows another variation of a character. You can also see the waxed paper under the project. The metallic colors were very popular.

These are some variations that would make nice gifts or knick knacks. Candle holders decorated in folk art motifs would be a good idea for any time of the year.

Close up view of a cartoon bunny with a holder for a votive candle.

Holiday Project-Flower Pot Craft

Holiday Project
Flower Pot Craft
I was asked about craft projects that students might do for Christmas and thought I might share some of the things that worked well with my students and my children. I have a few photos to demonstrate what I am talking about.
This project is fairly easy to do and is something that might last for years to come. Kids, and adults, seem to enjoy doing them.

Materials

Assorted small clay flower pots (You can buy these at a garden center or craft store)

Strong white craft glue (I bought some from a hardware store that worked really well.)

Assorted acrylic craft paints

Small brushes (size will depend on the size of your pots)

mixing trays,

Water containers (I use clean, empty cans or plastic containers, or plastic cups)

waxed paper / newspapers to protect work area. Waxed paper keeps the bottoms from sticking to paper, if paint should drip.

Assorted trim

buttons, ribbon, wiggly eyes, lace, cotton balls, felt, rick rack, etc.

Crystal Clear Glaze or Clear Gloss Spray for finishing

Method

I always started out with one idea, but, as we worked, our projects might easily turn out to be something totally different! Sometimes, we had "happy accidents", or things would change our schedule, so that might change a project.

Originally, we were going to make Christmas characters like Santa Claus, angels, toy soldiers, and such. I did not intend to use a pattern and insist that everyone make the same thing. I would suggest something basic, and then we all took off in our own directions. Sometimes things came out like we intended, but usually, everyone had something very different and creative.

At this particular time, we started to make Christmas things, but we ran out of time, and ended up doing this for an Easter project! So, my pictures show bunnies and spring designs, rather than Christmas. But, you can get the idea of how to put these together for any holiday, even Christmas as I originally intended. We had characters, but some people made candle holders, candle sticks, or even just decorative sculptures.

1. Allow about 5 flower pots of varying sizes, to be stacked and made into a character or object.

2. Begin with one pot, upside down for a base, then reverse the next pot, and so on up to build on the base. The top pot might also be upside down, if you want to use that one for a head.

The top photo shows how you might stack the pots for a character, or sculpture.

3. Use white craft glue on the rim of each pot in order to stick them together, stack, and let them dry. Do not put glue on the bottom, where it will rest on the paper.

4. Place newspaper on your work area to protect it, then place a square of waxed paper on top. This should help to keep your project from sticking to the newspaper, and is easier to remove than painted paper, if your paint should drip.

5. Place small amounts of acrylic paint in the wells of a mixing tray. Styrfoam trays work well for this, as well as the little plastic trays made to hold paint. I like to keep my small bottles of acrylic paint in plastic buckets. I also like to use the buckets for trim, buttons, and even for larger containers of water.

6. Determine what character that you are going to make, and assemble colors that you might need for that character. If you need help in visualizing your character, you might find a picture of Santa or the character that you want to make. You could sketch it, and use pencil to draw lines on your pots to show where you want the parts to be in your painted version.

7. Use brushes and acrylic paint to paint your character or object on the pots. I like to start with a lighter color, and begin at the top. By starting with a light color, it is easier to cover up if you change your mind or need to correct something. I also like to start at the top and work down, although some people seem to prefer starting with the bottom and moving up. Larger areas of paint could be applied with a sponge or rag.

8. Let the acrylic paint dry thoroughly. Be careful because, sometimes, paint may appear to be dry on the surface, but have little pockets of wet paint underneath. You don't want your paint to be too thick. But, it does need to cover the pots.

9. In order to get a glossy finish, that looks like ceramics, spray your project with gloss spray. This is best done outside, with lots of ventilation. Do not try to use one or two thick coats. Instead, spray several light coats, allowing your project to dry in between coats. Let your project dry before the next step.

10. Use the white craft glue to add decorations. A white cotton beard, cotton for fur, buttons, ribbon, or whatever you desire to add to complete your character. You could use something like Super Glue, but be cautious when using this. Be very careful not to get it on anything where it should not be, like in your eyes or on your fingers.

11. If you want a nice finish on the bottom, you could glue a piece of felt on the bottom pot. This will protect furniture or shelves.

12. Some variations are, of course, various holiday characters, nativity scenes, candle sticks (you might be careful if you use the gloss spray on your candle sticks. I'm not sure if that might be a fire hazard. We never actually used candles in them, but, instead, put in candles for decoration only. No flame, just a candle in a holder. They also might be handy for things on a desk, kitchen decorations or holders for items like wooden spoons, etc.

If you like a little sparkle, you could add some glitter to your project. I think that glitter can get too messy, and, over the years, it doesn't look as fresh as it did when it was new. I try to add interest with more lasting, and neater, trim or with the paint itself.

I have more images to show the steps, but I seem to be having some trouble with blogger. I didn't post for several days, although I tried. One day, we had thunderstorms so the computer was unplugged. Then, I couldn't get an image to post. Next came problems with getting on the internet. And, now, I get a message, on and off, saying that it cannot contact blogger, then it says saving, so I don't know if I have a post or not. When I tried to add an image, it seemed to not do anything. I may have to add my other images in another post.

I did want to get something out. I wanted to remind everyone to send your drawings of your hand, if you would like for me to put them in a slideshow. Don't be shy! Since I am kind of behind on my posting, you have a little more time to work on it. Mine is a lot more complicated to draw now with so many tiny wrinkles!

I remember when older people would say to a child, "Can you believe that my hand used to look like yours!" I know I couldn't believe it, when they would compare their wrinkled, gnarled hands to my tiny smooth hand, with dimples. And, now, I look at a young grandson's hand, and say the same thing! All these tiny wrinkles that cover tiny scars, not to mention bigger joints and some joints that cave in instead of curving out. Hands certainly show something about the journey through life and the person. Someone once told me that I had the hands of a sculptor. A ballet teacher said that my hands, as a child, were very expressive. (She didn't mention my dancing, though!) I did like to do sculpture, including punching the clay. But, that became a bit painful in recent years. I couldn' t lift the heavy blocks of clay, or the kiln lid anymore so I had to stop the large heads that I enjoyed doing. In fact, I had to move to lighter weight projects that didn't require as much lifting, or cleaning. Before my hands became so wrinkled, I had a star shaped scar on the back of my hand. The result of the first fire ant sting that I ever had, back in the 70s when those critters first invaded this area. I was told that I was allergic to them, and had a bad reaction to it. I was also told that it was like an immunization and they shouldn't bother me anymore. That was not true! The stings still hurt and I had a violent reaction to multiple bites, at one time.

Your hand, too, can tell a story. So, send it along. I look forward to seeing your efforts. Send it as a jpeg file to the contact address in my sidebar.

Check out the links on my sidebar. Cecilia, the singer, has some new things, just in time for Christmas. Enjoy her work!

More Deco Street

Deco Street Fog
8.5" x 11" Acrylic on paper

Deco Street Clear Night

8.5" x 11" Acrylic on paper

What do you think? Which one should I put in an art show? You can see more selections under Deco Street titles in the Archives Section.

This is another version of my Deco Street series. A bit lighter, and loose. A city scene, in black, white, and silver. I've shown a couple of versions of this previously.

The Deco Street paintings were done after I was trying to watch an old, black and white cowboy movie. The stagecoach had passed in the old western town. There was a post with what looked like it might be a sign on the board sidewalk, in front of some stores. Two men, in long, dark coats were standing near the sign. A woman joined them. She was wore a dress with silver spangles on a pointed bodice.

I planned to paint this as a black and white movie, as I saw it, all blurred, and wavey, from my Macular Degeneration and cataracts. I couldn't really make out the characters, either. But, as I painted, what emerged was a scene that looked more like it was from the movie, "42nd Street". I didn't want to name it that, so I changed it to Deco Street. The men in tuxedos, with shiney, black hair, and cigarettes; the woman in her silver spangled dress, hands on hips in a slinky pose; another woman in silhouette, with pulled back hair; an old fashioned street light leads to a park; and a street sign is left blank for the viewer to fill in with whatever they want. It's somewhat of a non-descript street. Fog mingles with the smoke of the city to conceal details of the buildings.
I did keep working to obtain the effect that I was after, and ended up with six different paintings. They all had more detail than I saw and seemed to take on a life of their own!

I'm still struggling with what I want to show in the art show. Entries are due Friday morning.

Besides picking the art work, I'm trying to be sure that I select something that will fit one of my frames. The rules say that they can't be over 38" in width. I have one large frame, ready to go, that is 32 1/2" wide, so I may be able to put something in that. And I have a nice frame that matches "Froggy Went A Courtin'" But, I can't enter two watercolors, I just realized. I may have to just go with the frogs, just to get something in. It would be easier to carry!

I'm also thinking of one of the "Deco Street" paintings. That would be in a different media, since it is acrlyics.

Hopefully, I will have the pictures ready tonight, and can pop them in frames tomorrow. Add the entry forms and I'm ready to go for Friday. But, at this point, I've looked so long that I need a fresh pair of eyes. There is a point when you can't decided which is the best to show. But, after a while, they all start to look bad!

Friday is also the day for entry information to be in for the Art Auction downtown. Actual entries don't have to be in until November 1st and 2nd.

Last night, while trying to watch "The Jazz Singer" on tv, I realized that it is no longer a joy to watch the old silent movies. I can't read what they say, unless I sit in front of the tv. I was kind of interested in this one, since it is so historic, being one of the first movies that "talked". I've seen modern movies about Al Jolsen and "The Jazz Singer", but I had not actually seen the movie. What surprised me was that the dialogue was printed and the "talking" part was the music! I think that I gave up after a while since I couldn't read the words from my bed, and just surfed channels, and I dozed off.

I sort of like those old movies, partly because they show what life was like when my parents were young, and these are the movies that their generation enjoyed. We got in on the "tail end" of those times, in the late '30s and early '40s. And, often, they have really good stories.

Well, back to work.

Thanks so much for your comments and interest. Feel free to pass these along to others who might enjoy them.

Vision-Deco Street

Deco Street
8.5" x 11"
acrylic on cardstock
black, white, and silver
"Deco Street" is one of six black, white, and silver acrylic paintings I did on cardstock. The idea for this series came when I was watching a black and white movie on tv. It was a western and there was a street scene. The stagecoach had just passed. There was a sign post on the street, a woman stood near it, wearing a dress with a silver bodice with silver spangles on it. There were two men also on the street, with dark suits on. To me, they were blurred and it was hard to make out details. I intended to show the blurry characters and buildings, but, as I worked, these art deco type characters appeared in glamorous poses, with tuxedoes, slicked back hair with a shine in it, and a woman in her silver dress. These images of a city scene were more distinct than what I saw, and, for some reason, I added a ghost-like figure in white lace. Sometimes, figures and features just happen in my work. They take on a life of their own.
The other paintings show a progression from the very blurry images that I actually see, to the more detailed, decorative pictures.
The silver does show up more in the original than in the scanned copy of the picture. Here, it appears more as gray.
I have posted one in this series earlier in my Vision postings. I thought that you might enjoy seeing another in the series.

If you read "GretaWire", Greta Van Susteran's blog, you can find a discussion there today on Macular Degeneration. Greta is a Fox News anchor, with her show "On The Record" on Fox News tv at 9:00 p.m. Central time, and 10:00 p.m. Eastern time. I had to add my two cents worth, of course.
http://gretawire.foxnews.com/2007/10/08/macular-degeneration/#comment-26340
http://gretawire.foxnews.com/
I'm not sure what comment started the discussion, but I couldn't help but wonder if it was what I said. She said she read the comment last night, but I posted mine a few days back. I told her about the time when I was at the George Bush Library to see Tony Snow and had to sit in the overflow auditorium. We were moved around to make more room and my grandson and I were separated. They directed me to the wall area, but I asked to sit on the aisle because I couldn't see very well . (Because of the AMD in one eye, and cataracts in both of them.) I stayed put. Snow and Bush 41 came into the auditorium and told us they would be back after the presentation in the main auditorium to answer questions. Meanwhile, we had to watch on a big screen. (Which probably worked better for me because I could see more than a doll sized person that way!)
When Bush and Snow returned, I leaned out into the aisle to see them , with several Secret Service men facing us and standing in front of the two celebrities. I thought that Tony Snow looked so much better than he had when he had been so ill. And I was suprised that he had brown hair instead of the gray that I was used to on tv.
"Whoops!" I thought. "I had better quit doing that!" I caught myself closing my bad eye, the one with the Macular Degeneration, and trying to see better with my good eye. Something that I noticed I was doing more and more.
I could envision myself being thrown on the ground and hauled off somewhere. No telling what they all might think that I was doing, winking at the former president and the Press Secretary!
That didn't happen, of course. They probably didn't even notice me due to the stage lights, but I felt like I was right in front of them and didn't want to appear weird.
Anyway, I'm glad that Greta started the AMD discussion today. So many have struggled and suffered from it, and so many more are going to have it. Maybe, with some national exposure, more help with be forthcoming. I had never heard of it before I was diagnosed with it months ago.
It's been about a year since I noticed the first symptoms of Macular Degeneration, wavey venetian blinds, a wavey handrail down a hall, and wavey telephone poles and street signs.
Look at my older posts that are prefaced with the word "Vision" to see my other posts on Macular Degeneration. And notice the links under "Eye Sites" for more information on this disease.

Saturday afternoon turned out to be a pretty good time. Lots of memories of a Saturday afternoon at the Eloia in Calvert, Miss Mollie's hamburger place, and Henry, the man who sometimes brought a sack of hamburgers to the picture show to eat while he sat on the front row with the little kids. Two Tim Holt movies, "StageCoach" and "My Darling Clementine" on tv, and I made myself a hamburger for lunch. Pulled my chair right up to the tv set, and it was like the old movie screen.
I clearly remember seeing "My Darling Clementine" and going back to my grandfather's dry goods store (Conitz Dry Goods Store, now Mud Creek Pottery), across the street, and spending the rest of the afternoon in the men's department, standing by the men's blue jean jackets and blue jeans, trying to get up nerve enough to ask Grandpa if I could have one of those men's jackets, like Tim wore in the movie. Of course, when I did, I got a big "No" from Grandpa, Grandma, my uncle, my dad, and my mother.
"Girls don't wear those kinds of things! Go to the ladies department and find yourself a nice pair of girls' jeans!"
That just wouldn't do. I envisioned myself, someday, riding the range, checking fences, and all with Tim-a sidekick, kind of like Chito, even if I was a girl. I could ride a horse, too, if I had one!
There was another Tim Holt movie this afternoon, "Fifth Avenue Girl", and "Treasure of the Sierra Madre" will be on in the next few days. Today I just made baked potatoes to enjoy with the movie. Any day with a Tim Holt movie has to be a good day!
Hope that you are having a nice Columbus Day! I just can't imagine how anyone could be so brave as to get on those little ships and sail on the ocean into the unknown. I would be terrified to even get on a big ship, or an airplane, today! I guess that it is good that some people are brave and adventurous, or we would all still be living in caves. Unlike when we were in school, it was just another school day here, and a day of sales when stores try to have Columbus Day specials. Kids probably didn't even get a special coloring sheet to color today, like we used to do for any special days that taught us about history. I know that they did math, though! Oh, those times tables! (And, if you read my blog, you know how I feel about math, and why.)

Vision-Black and White Movie

Black & White Movie
8.5" x 11"
Acrylic on Paper


I love old movies-really old movies! Even black and white movies. One time, I was watching an old movie in black and white, and my youngest grandson asked, "Grandma, when did the world change from black and white to color?" I still laugh when I think about that.


Of course, it is helpful for artists to do value studies in black and white, whether that is in oil paint, acrylics, charcoal, pencil, tempera, ink, or whatever the media of choice is. Maybe watching all those old movies has made it easier for me to do those studies using only neutrals.


In the painting above, I had been watching an old movie from my bed. I blinked and tried to clear up the image, but it didn't help. I had to walk over to the tv set to see what movie I was watching. I could see a woman in a triangular shaped dress, wide at the shoulders, silver, with spangles on it. There were a couple of men, dressed in dark clothing, in the scene. Other characters were sort of smeared into the picture, with some rectangular, tall shapes that I thought might be fence posts or buildings. What looked like some Art Deco art to me, was actually a western movie. Men were dressed in dark suits, a woman, perhaps a dance hall girl, was dressed in a silver, spangled dress. It was a western street with buildings in the back and a sign near the woman. Actually, this image was sharper than what I actually saw.


As I painted "Black & White Movie", I was very aware that, although I was trying to paint something that was distorted and blurred, my brain was insisting that I paint something more realistic. Something that showed characters and buildings while still concentrating on contrast, light and shadow, and shapes. It seemed like a battle between the left and right brain. I wanted to let that right brain work, but that left brain just had to have its say in what I was doing.


I was determined to show what I was seeing, so I kept working on different versions. I seemed to work backward, from a more detailed painting, then taking away and distoring in subsequent pictures. There are six of these, each a little different. The last one, shown above, is closer to what I was seeing.


I began to think that my characters were more like Art Deco people than people in a western movie. I thought of the movie and song "42nd Street" as the paintings developed. Slick, greasey, black hair and tuxes for the men; slinky, clinging dresses and slick, waved hair for the ladies. A street scene that looks like a set for a dance number. I didn't want the painting to be about 42nd Street, so I decided to call it "Deco Street".


I actually like a lot of the old 20s, 30s, and 40s designs, including Art Deco, modern, and streamlined. I appreciate it more now, than I did when I was younger, and there were more of the original designs from that period still around.


I used only black, white, and silver acrlyic in this series of paintings. The metallic silver doesn't show up as well in the scans as they do in the original. Here, they are another gray tone. They are all on paper rather than canvas. I thought these little paintings might be studies for something larger on canvas, if they were successful as small pieces. And, too, I wanted to record the images I was seeing before I forgot them.

Deco Street

8.5" x 11"

Acrylic on Paper

I had a little trouble posting the past few days, but Blogger seems to be working again, and I figured out what I was doing wrong, as well. Whew! That was frustrating. But look for more work to come.

Check out my links to Artists and Authors and Interesting Sites. And please refer my blog and group to others who might be interested. I appreciate your comments and your interest.

Hope you enjoy these Art Deco paintings.

Vison-Ready To Go

Ready To Go

8"x 12"

Watercolors

and acrylic

The darkness faded away to boiling clouds of smoke-colored fog that filled the room. I could see the cabinet with a chair beside it, the door frame, and the mirror where the eye chart reflected. And, I could see my feet with my black walking shoes on the foot rest of the examining chair, poking out from the fog.

I could see the letters on the eye chart, just like they had appeared when I had looked at it during the exams. The letters were not clear with shadow images appearing behind and to the right of each letter. Smaller letters toward the bottom were blurred and were indestinguishable. Still, the doctor had said that my eyesight was good enough to pass the eye exam for the driving test.

The technician had told me, as we were signing papers before the injection, that they would give me some eye drops to take home with me and to use them every 4 hours, as directed. He said it would help if I kept them in the refrigerator. They would be soothing to my eye, if they were cold. He also advised me to use cold washcloths on my eye if it started to be uncomfortable. He explained that some people said that they felt like there was something in their eye, like a grain of sand. And, he told me that my eye may turn very red, if the doctor hit a blood vessel when he gave me the shot. But, that was nothing to be concerned about. It was normal. He also said that I might experience pressure on my eye, but it would not hurt to get the shot. They were doing lots of deadening. (Of course, I had not really believed that. My heart was pounding. I felt hot, anxious, a little sick at my stomach. I may faint. Even after the shot.)

Dressed in blue sweat pants (I guess they were scrubs but they looked like some kind of excercise outfit, to me, instead of a professional looking nurse uniform) and a patterned smock top, the nurse came in the room. She took a small, round object from the cabinet and came over to me. She put the insrument on my eye and quickly removed it. She turned back to the cabinet, put the instrument down, and walked to the door.

"Okay, you can go now," she said as she walked out the door.

I thought that was a little odd. She wasn't very friendly now. Before the shot, she had not been exactly warm, but she had been sort of in the background, with the techician and the doctor closer to me. She could have, at least, asked me how I was doing, or commented on something like the fact that it was all over and I was doing just fine.

I stood up slowly as my daughter arrived at the door. "Ready to go?" she asked.

"I guess so," I answered. I thought the doctor might have appeared to reassure me, but the hall was empty. I had to use my walking cane for a little while since my knees bothered me after sitting. We walked to the reception desk. Water ran from my eye and I used the tissue to blot the tears on my cheek.

"Here's your card for your next appointment," the receptionist handed me a card, which I couldn't read. I thought it was from my eye watering. I handed it to my daughter. I thought that, maybe, this is why they wanted you to pay before seeing the doctor. You might not be able to write a check after seeing him. But, of course, the person with you could take care of that.

"He wants to see you in a week to check how your eye is doing. If it turns really red, call us right away." She turned to talk to the person working beside her.

We went out to the car. My daughter was driving.

"The drops!" I said. "I thought they were supposed to give me some drops. I didn't get anything."

My daughter went back into the office and returned with a small bottle of eye drops.

I had read, online, about someone who had a shot in their eye. They said that, after their injection, riding in the car really bothered them. They finally solved the problem by just closing their eyes for the trip home. Now I understood what they meant. Things seemed to just whiz by, if I looked out the side windows, almost making me seasick. Light reflected off the back of parked cars like big, bright, half rainbows. The bending and distortion of objects also tended to make me a little sick at my stomach. I closed my eyes and held the tissue over my eye. I didn't like to ride this way, unable to see where I was going and what was around me.

At home, I put the drops in the refrigerator and fixed a cold washcloth to put on my eye. I walked to the couch in the den, sat on the reclining section of the couch, took off my shoes, and put my feet up. I turned on the tv to watch an old movie. I would spend a lot of time here, with the cool washcloth on my eye, listening to an old movie, in the next few days.

I didn't have nerve enough to look at my eye until later. At least we knew the answer to what would happen when they put a needle in the eye. It didn't deflate, fall out, or have all the juice inside to run out. I remembered being cautioned so often about standing on a chair and holding a coat hanger. I was told that an older girl had put her eye out when she was on a chair, with a coat hanger, and fell. So, wouldn't a needle also make one have to get a glass eye?

I couldn't help but think about the rhyme we used to say as children. "Cross my heart and hope to die; stick a needle in my eye." This was about the strongest promise one could make. I never dreamed anyone actually would do that, for legitimate reasons. But, I had just had a needle stuck in my eye.

When I finally did get the courage to look at my eye, I was horrified to see the bottom lid drooping some, and the top lid hanging a little. It was only a little pink in places, so I was sure that the doctor had avoided hitting a blood vessel. I guessed that it would clear up quickly. He had done a good job. The drops and cold packs would probably tighten the lids up again, and make my eye clear up soon. It did feel a little like something in my eye, like a piece of hair, perhaps. So, I kept pushing hair away from my eye-some of it real, some of it just the way my eye felt.

I had survived the shot and now looked forward to going back to the doctor to get it checked in a week. Hopefully the extra blood vessels would have stopped forming, the bleeding avoided, and my vision would start improving. I tried not to think about the injections that had been scheduled for every four weeks during the next year-possibly two years. I needed to think about the positive, and the "right now", and not dreading the rest of the shots. Hopefully, they would all be as easy as this one had been. Still, I was a bit uneasy about how long it might be before the discomfort would go away and I could see better. It was manageable for now. Soon, I may be able to continue drawing, painting, writing, and riding in the car with less distortion.

"Okay, You Can Go Now" was painted on 140 # Strathmore watercolor paper using Winsor Newton watercolors. Acrylics were used on the eye chart.

I hope that you will share this with anyone who you think might be interested. I am curious as to what others with AMD, or similar problems, experience. My original idea in starting a blog was to share what I have experienced so that others might be better prepared when it happens to them, or that others might relate to what they, or those they know, have already experienced.

Other subjects and memories will be posted on my blog, but I thought it best to post my AMD experiences in order, as they happened. You can see some of my other art work on my Google group, Art -By-Cecelia. I hope you will jon that group and get updates when I have added something to my blog or pages. Also, take a look at the interesting Authors and Artists, and Interesting Sites section of my blog. Check back when you have time, and enjoy!