If I Keep Walking West, My Feet Will Just Get Wet!

After weeks of "disconnect" from this blog and other areas of my life, I have come to a point in my life, once again, where I can take a deep breath and look toward the things I enjoy most. One of them is posting and networking with my friends here on the web. Many of you have been patiently awaiting my return after our move. Thank you!
The move? I recently stepped out of my familiar life (a comfort zone, to be sure) into a new venture. Yes! It was a somewhat scary decision to make. For years now we have looked for a new opportunity; a new job that we could do. And God, being who He is, answered my prayers. One day, out of the blue, we were asked if we would be willing to manage a motel! We thought about it, prayed about it and well, here we are!!
So far, so good. We are in a lovely little community on the southern Oregon coast...Gold Beach, Oregon. Gold Beach is home of one of the most scenic adventures in the Northwest. Since 1895, mail boats have delivered mail and packages up-river to Agness and still do today. Loads of fun and unsurpassed beauty can be had and seen on the Rogue River Mail Boat Hydro-Jet Trips!

Though I have been very busy and focused on the details of running The Sand Dollar Inn, I have managed to do a bit of painting. Actually, just a few watercolor sketches. I will try to get them posted as soon as I can get MY computer set up. I am also looking forward to getting out and about in the art community here. There are 6 galleries here and many artists, so I'd better get my brushes wet and start creating again....oh! how I miss it!

I'm Back!....almost.

After 3 weeks away, I am ready to be back! I have really missed blogging and I have missed the contact with friends I have met here! Let me tell you, the last few weeks have been non-stop and exhausting, to say the least.
Almost 3 weeks ago, we loaded up the moving truck with all of our belongings from our 4 bdrm home and headed down the road to Gold Beach, OR. When we arrived we unloaded the truck and attempted to arrange our things in our new home ... a 1 bdrm apartment! It's really not as bad as it sounds!
We have taken over the management of a local motel. Lots of work ahead of us and the summer season will be fast approaching, but just wanted to let you know that I am still here. I unpacked all of my art supplies today and arranged them in my little corner of the living room (lovingly, of course). I really have missed painting!!!! I need the therapy.....maybe, after a nap.......
P.S. Check back soon for more updates.

A Request for Patience

I am so thankful for those of you who are loyal readers of my blog and who enjoy stopping by to visit and see what I've been up to in and out of The Water Bucket Studio. Thank you, thank you!! If you are one of them, then you have noticed and probably have been disappointed as of late to find that when you arrive, nothing has changed. No new posts! What is wrong with this picture?!
Between the busyness of life, the process of major decisions in our family, illness, etc., I simply have not had time or energy. Sound familiar? If so, then my loyal readers will understand and will keep coming back just to check in.
We have been blessed with a career change that has been much wanted and desired for several years now. It was a huge decision for us. But when you leave it at Jesus' feet and let Him be your guide. What grace!!!!!
The big changes are to take place in the next month and so I will be taking some more time off from my blog in the meantime. Please be patient!!!! And please check back soon and I will give you the full story. If the Lord wills, all will go smoothly and we will just step into place.

New Year Greetings to All!

Can you believe 2007 is almost ended??? As a child I heard adults saying things like "Time flies by so quickly.", "The older I get the shorter the day.", and "Every year gets shorter and shorter!" I never understood what they were talking about, as I'm sure everyone of you can relate to and remember also. NOW I UNDERSTAND! It is true. There truly is so much to do and so little time to accomplish it.

The Lord has showered me with blessings in 2007 and I am so very grateful. He has continually clothed me, fed me, and sheltered me from the storms (both literally and figuratively) this year, all the while teaching me some powerful, wonderful, and sometimes difficult lessons. I never wanted to experience some of these things, and yet, I am so much better off having been through them and learning from them. I am thankful for it all. Even more, I am thankful for a loving God, who guides me through all of it.

Another Bird Story

Being delinquent about posting here has made me feel quite cranky. To all of those who visit regularly, I apologize. I'll tell you it hasn't been for lack of desire, but rather, just too busy to get even one painting completed! I have several projects in the works and will post them as I am able.
All of my life I have had a loving interest in penmanship, calligraphy, and lettering. Oh, my poor parents! how frustrated they must have felt with all of the paper waste! You see, as a child, I remember my school projects and homework had to be "perfect" (at least, in presentation) and if the very first letter written was not acceptable by my standards I would simply wad up the page and throw it away. Sometimes this took 1/2 a ream! LOL!!! And so, my attraction for beautiful penmanship grew. I never did take instruction in calligraphy or any other form of lettering arts through the years, but have been self-taught. I did let the interest and obsession wain over the years, but recently, it has been revived and there are not enough books (or paper, possibly) on the subject in our tiny local library. I have purchased a couple of pens with italic nibs and a wonderful fountain pen with a very springy and flexible nib that I am anxious to put to work. It needs a new sac and just a thorough "once over" though...something that I do not feel qualified to do. Look for some artistic lettering posts in the future here.
I must tell you a funny story! I wish I had pics to post, but alas, I did not have my camera ready. Whilst flitting around the house doing chores and getting ready for my watercolor class the other morning, I noticed Miss Kitty running back and forth from window to window. I looked out to see what was so interesting to her and found that there was a huge flock of Starlings flying and diving about just outside. I didn't think much of it. I went out to get in my car a couple hours later to leave for class and was given quite a shock. My car (which btw, is new) was covered (and I do mean, covered) in bird poop!!! I was not parked under any trees or electrical lines, as you might expect, but those Starlings had decided to swarm my car and leave me parting gifts anyway. I could hardly see through the front window and even the door handle was covered! I didn't have time to spray it down at the moment, so headed out to class. I stopped at the coffee house on the way and the girls at the shop were rolling laughing as I pulled up. One of the girls said "If you don't have time to wash that off, I'd suggest taking the backroads. It's embarassing!" It really was funny! I kept thinking "Have you ever had one of those days when you just felt like you'd been c____ed on?" Well, I did. There's something about birds................

Kitty, Chef in the Kitchen, and My Guide

Life here on the Oregon coast is pretty wonderful lately. I haven't been posting regularly lately, because so much is going on in our neck of the woods and for the most part, I have to say everything has been good, good, good. Since moving to our new place in August, we have had many "visitors" to our home, all with the hopes that we would be keeping a bottomless dish of cat food on our porch. Yes, cats are abundant in our neighborhood! I warned the cat lover in our household that he was not to start feeding them and he took it to heart for a good 2 months, I'd say, until a little female revealed that she was living under the church building next door AND that she was starving. After a few bowls of milk and a morsel of left-over cod, she decided to follow us home and she has not left since. She now has run of the house (though she never strays far from the "princess chair", where she lounges and bathes herself regularly) during the day and then she promptly wants out at night. The arrangement works well for all of us, so far. I was talking with a friend about this new arrangement and she made the remark "All strays that you take in are 1. pregnant, 2. full of fleas, 3. wormy, or 4. all of the above." Miss Kitty is quite clean, but also quite PREGNANT!!!! I'm not sure how we will deal with that, but all in all, we like our new guest. I'll try to post a picture of her soon.
It has been a treat this week to have our son home, in good spirits, and to see his love of cooking at work in our kitchen! Today we will be feasting on a wonderful smelling pot roast with all of the trimmings.
My Guide, My God. He is so good and His love never ceases to amaze me! In the turmoil of this life, I am thankful, beyond description for His goodness and peace of mind he provides to me and my family.

Hooked.....line & sinker

Aside from all of the busy-ness and business of life, I have been playing with a couple of "new to me" fountain pens. I joined the Fountain Pen Network and have been obsessively researching everything there is to know about fountain pens. Absolutely wonderful!!!! I even have received absolute approval from my dear hubby to persue this beautiful art. Yesterday he and I had to make a trip to Eugene to visit a friend in the hospital (that's another story) and we stopped into the local pen shop, Pensations. The clerk there handed me a Namiki Falcon and instantaneously a thrilling shiver went up my spine! Oh My! What a beautiful pen! The nib has a nice flex to it, producing lovely line variations. I handed it to Larry and his immediate comment was "This pen sells itself." Understandably though, at a retail price of $175, it did not sell itself to us yesterday. There are so many beautiful pens in the world, you can easily acquire many wonderful writers for less than $50.
I have also been playing with brush lettering on my watercolor paintings and that has been fun too. The other day I painted these rabbits (notice the spelling) and being not extremely pleased with the painting itself, I decided to play with lettering on it with a small flat wc brush. I was so focused on the lettering itself...well, you can see for yourself the error made. I aced spelling and english throughout my school years, but you wouldn't know it by this painting. LOL!
I also am very interested to begin learning Spencerian and Copperplate Script. It is so lovely! And I have completed a painting with just that in mind, so watch for it in the future here on my blog.

Lilac and Rambling.........

Okay, well it seems like I have been away for a long time, but really, I haven't been away at all. I have just been busy and tired. Needless to say, but my paintbrushes have been getting thirsty also. I feel so neglectful! But, after being up till 1:30 a.m. doing our books and then wide awake this morning at 5:30 a.m., I did manage to go to my watercolor class and amazing to me, managed to accomplish this little painting in my Moleskine. This picture does not do it justice at all. All of the purples, blues and pinks blend so much nicer than what it is showing here. Also, it is a pen & ink. You can't really tell here, can you?
I also have a couple larger paintings I am working on, but I have gotten to "a dead zone" in my mind on them, so they are set aside for a bit of time.
Keep coming back! And thank you so much for visiting!

Busy-ness, New Wheels, & An Apple a Day

1. I have not posted any paintings this week as my life has been so busy!!! It's just been one thing after another, it seems. In the midst of the whirlwind yesterday, I thought, "I wish this could stop!" But, after more thinking I realized that if life were not busy most of the time, then I would have to learn to make myself busy, in order that I didn't get bored. Funny how that works?! It is a blessing to have the health to be able keep moving.

2. One of the things that kept me on Friday was the purchasing of a new vehicle. Now that is a blessing! I'm thrilled with the ride! Also, for the most part, the experience with the dealer and salesman was quite pleasant. I have experienced worse.

3. I bought some beautiful apples this week and have been faithfully eating one a day. Yummm! they are so good! Like the old saying goes, "An apple a day keeps the doctor away." (the updated 21st century saying goes like this, "An apple a day, peeled, keeps the doctor away.")

Art as Therapy and Just Doodling.....

I remember, many years ago, that I used to doodle everytime I was on the phone. I don't think I do that much anymore, in fact, I haven't been doodling at all! In retrospect, I think that was during a time in my young life that I didn't have many pressures on me (or, at least, I didn't think I did ???) and the carefree artistic side of me had no problem with attempting art. It seems that I woke up one morning and life had become chaotic and stiff and I found myself struggling along like so many others...and the doodling (the attempt to create) was GONE! Suddenly, I had this need to get back into my artistic self....I needed the therapy. The good news is that last night while on the phone, I doodled! And it felt so good. Even the conversation was more lively and pleasant. Below I've posted my "telephone doodles" (watercolor washes were added this morning). So, what is it about creating art that is so therapeutic? Please leave your comments and tell me why art is therapeutic for you.

Moleskine & Oh, Peacock Feathers!

Oh, Peacock Feathers!
WC, 5 x 16

I have thoroughly enjoyed browsing through many artist's blogs and websites and viewing their watercolor sketchbooks. So much so, that I have been "bitten by the sketch bug"! So, yesterday my 4 (yes, 4) Moleskine Watercolor Sketchbooks arrived and like a child in a candy store, I immediately began the task of filling it up. So much fun! and the pressure to perform with perfection was not present at all. As you see here, my first sketch is that of a peacock. The paints I used were from my Sakura Koi Pocket Field Box. Of course the whole thing was experimental.... my first impression of the paper in the Moleskine is not real good, but I'll keep experimenting. The Koi paints also are not my favorite, but I do like their intensity. I'm just not used to working with pan paints. More experimentation is called for.

I also ordered a 3 x 5 Moleskine Daily Planner, specifically for the purpose of "re-loading" it. I've never done any bookbinding before, but Martha at Trumpetvine Travels has inspired me with her sketchbooks and complete instructions to "re-loading these little Moleskines with watercolor paper. I'll let you know how it all turns out, once I find the time to give it a try.

Well, off to Bible study and then to my watercolor class this afternoon!!!! Have a wonderful day!

Blog Rush

I am not very "puter literate" and this blogging sometimes gets the best of me. Getting visitors to my blog is always a bit mind-boggling to me. I know that in the blogger world, that is the whole point...getting people to your blog! So I'm going to give this fairly new thing a try.....Nancy Standlee, over at her Art Blog turned me on to Blog Rush and I'm going to give it a try. It's all about driving traffic.

Hmmmm....

Hmmmm.... I am having great difficulty focusing this week, as I have come down with a most terrible cold accompanied by the dreaded cough and achy bones. Yesterday, I spent all day in my jammies and mostly curled up in bed. As I wrote in an earlier post, yesterday was the day I was supposed to go on a jaunt with my dear mum. This cold was a great disappointment, since I didn't want to share it with her and I get to spend so little time with her. But, I think I'm coming around this morning, so I think I'll be taking some time to paint today.

Dust If You Must

Ran across this wonderful poem, Dust If You Must
It reminds us all that sometimes you absolutely must take time for yourself and others and to not worry about the small stuff, like dust particles.

The Coffee or The Cup

My father sent this to me and I'd like to share it with all of you. There are times that I do not enjoy "looking into the mirror" and seeing my reflection, but we all must do so, if we are to mature and find joy and happiness in this life here.

The Coffee or The Cup!

This really is profound, I am going to try and keep this in mind the next time I feel "stressed".....

A group of alumni, highly established in their careers, got together to visit their old university professor. Conversation soon turned into complaints about stress in work and life.

Offering his guests coffee, the professor went to the kitchen and returned with a large pot of coffee and an assortment of cups - porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal, some plain looking, some expensive, some exquisite - telling them to help themselves to the coffee.

When all the students had a cup of coffee in hand, the professor said: "If you noticed, all the nice looking expensive cups were taken up, leaving behind the plain and cheap ones. While it is normal for you to want only the best for yourselves, that is the source of your problems and stress. Be assured that the cup itself adds no quality to the coffee. In most cases it is just more expensive and in some cases even hides what we drink. What all of you really wanted was coffee, not the cup, but you consciously went for the best cups... And then you began eyeing each other's cups.

Now consider this: Life is the coffee; the jobs, money and position in society are the cups. They are just tools to hold and contain Life, and the type of cup we have does not define, nor change the quality of life we live. Sometimes, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the coffee God has provided us." God brews the coffee, not the cups.......... Enjoy your coffee!

"The happiest people don't have the best of everything. They just make the best of everything." Live simply. Love generously. Care deeply. Speak kindly. Leave the rest to God.

Fresh Bread, Little Helper, and Puppy

1. The aroma of fresh bread (foccacia w/parmesan, to be exact) from the oven. Mmmmm...so good, in fact, I bought one and when I got into the car, I tore off a large chunk and proceeded to eat it right away! So much for dinner...................:)

2. I went grocery shopping this morning and a young boy of about 12 approached me in front of the soups and asked "Where is the tomato soup?" I pointed it out and he grabbed two large cans and took off running. The next aisle over there he was again and asked me where another item was, grabbed it and took off running! This continued throughout my shopping and I observed him several times with his arms loaded down. When I got to the check-out stand there he was with a shopping cart piled high. He was alone, so I asked him if he got all of his shopping done, to which he replied "Yes, but I am worn out." As I pushed my cart out to unload my groceries, there he was again! This time unloading them into the back of a beat up pick-up. As he climbed into the truck (on the passenger side) I heard him say to the elderly woman in the driver's seat "That was sure fun, Grandma!"

3. A small yellow lab puppy on a leash, running round 'n round his owner's legs! I had to laugh!

My parents, Drive, and Memes

1. I believe that my parents are wonderful! I'm thankful that the good Lord placed me in their care and that they gave me the knowledge they have, that they love me, and now that "I'm all grown up" I can recognize it. Thank you, Mom and Dad!

2. After yesterday's overcast and soggy skies, I was thrilled to awake to sunshine! Driving in the beautiful sunshine is always refreshing!

3. I have been looking at several "Memes" to use on my blog, but was always a bit disappointed to find that they had no real value, no purpose, no meaning to me. What is a “meme”, you ask? According to Merriam-Webster Online, it is: An idea, behavior, style, or usage that spreads from person to person within a culture.
In my opinion, that may be good...or, it may be bad! I wanted to find one that I could learn something from, that would cause me to think and maybe, just maybe, may cause my readers to think also. Finally, I believe I have found one that could be of use here. So, every Tuesday will be devoted to the Meme of my choice. And the winner is....................................Starting next Tuesday!

Is It a Bird?, New Blog Friends, and a little Jaunt

1. The little neighbor cat, whom I have aptly named Little Bell (since she wears a little bell on her collar) came to visit this morning. After saying hello and getting the daily pet, she jumped onto the fence and into the tree where she sat like a bird and watched the traffic meander by for 1/2 an hour.

2. I am enjoying a couple new friends I have met at Blog Catalog . Be sure to visit!

3. What a treat to go visiting loved ones!

Manners, Growth and Little Pilots

1. Today, my son brought home a very nice young man to meet me. A young man from the midwest with the nicest manners a mother could hope for. My son is polite also and I am happy to see that he is befriending young men who are aware of their place and show respect to others.

2. My own personal growth has become a priority and focus for me. Especially the use of my tongue. I don't have a problem with the language I choose to use, but where and when I voice my opinion or thoughts. It feels good to be able to walk away from a conversation without kicking myself for the things I have said that were destructive, uninvited, or even useless to the other person.

"A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things. But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned." Matthew 12:35-37

Notice, the Lord said "...........every idle word..............." Sure, makes me want to be careful!

3. This past week when I go out to the porch in the mornings, I have been watching the hummingbirds. They are frantically storing up "fuel" for the long migration in the fall. They are fun to watch and amazing little pilots too!

To Know Me is to Love Me

I'm not a snob, but, I may be an INTROVERT. I found this description of myself at Crazy Dust in My Coffee

Introversion

"Remember, someone you know, respect, and interact with every day is an introvert, and you are probably driving this person nuts."

~ Jonathan Rauch

"I am an introvert.

This means that I prefer to be by myself. It’s not that I can’t or won’t talk with other people, it’s just that to recharge my batteries I need lots of time away from people. In solitude and quiet self-reflection. Alone.

This does not mean that I am weird or strange. It just means that I process information differently than extroverts do. Introverts think then speak, while extroverts think while speaking. It’s that simple.

This does not mean that I don’t care about others. It just means that hearing about the details of day-to-day existence for someone else tires me, so I don’t clamor to hear about someone else's life. Hence, you’ll get very few phone calls and very little chitchat from me. People wear me out.

This does not mean that I never socialize and that I am shy. It just means that I prefer smaller groups of people over larger groups of people. When faced with parties and big events I tend to fade into the background and/or get very quiet because I feel uncomfortable with all the movement and shallow talking that is going on around me. I get tired.

And finally, this does not mean that I am aloof or haughty. It just means that I look at things more deeply and then measure my words more slowly than extroverts. In reality, I’m the flexible, independent, responsible, creative and reflective soul who sits on the curb watching the parade go by, cheering the extroverts on, trying to make sense of it all. . . and wondering when I’ll be able to get back home to recharge."