Jill's mother, Joyce Nelson

I painted this for Mildred for her birthday

Big art show next Friday

Been downtown all day cleaning my studio and the common areas for our big First Friday May show next Friday. I really enjoy my friends down there. They are super cool. They are community but leave me alone. how great is that?

this does look like James

Graphite of James

Bill as Farmer

It is finished

Lilies in glass vase 4-17

Nina Talon from Wednesday Night Drawing Group

James from Wednesday Night Drawing in Gouache on Kitty Wallis Paper

Dinner at the Owl Restaurant Together

Here it comes, the next painting!

Mildred is doing well

John Cobb Dennis has passed away

Tonight I am moved that my sweet step father in law has passed away at 88. He hung in with life until it was just gone. I saw this first hand. I had a nice visit with him, me and Brown, a week ago. I was worried then that he was dying- my heart felt the end was not far away. I will miss him. He was the first thing I thought of when I thought of who I knew was a truly sweet and kind soul. He loved Jesus. He was a peaceful man and I always felt a bond with him. I am grateful for the company and warmth he provided for my mother in law.

A very expensive and hard fought picture

The weather drove us indoors.

Well,we really got to know each other this week. I made the remark earlier in the week that I thought this plein air business was lonely (you are away from each other doing your own thing verses being all huddled up in a small studio setting where you are tripping over each other) and lo and behold! The most horrendous weather I can recall since the Mothers Day tornadoes....we lost out on a lot of outdoor opportunities but we took photos and went indoors. Here is my almost finished palm frond pastel

My first attempt at plein air

I was instructed to go find something to paint at the Scipio Creek Marina and was taken with this fishing boat, the Kitty Ann, washed up over the pier by a storm. There were trees growing out of the back. It was HARD! I stood there for the better

part of 4 hours and the tender backs of my lily white knees got blistered by the sun. It is a fun little sketch but I don't think I impressed anybody, especially me. But not bad for a first go.

Albert Handell Paints En Plein Air in the Apalachicola Cemetery

John at Easter two years ago

Stars are in alignment

William and I are often intrigued by the concurence of things insignifcant. Some might refer to them as "coincidences". We do not. We know there is some special force trying to make itself known to those who listen ....sounds weird...I know. But, we have shared so many of these experiences- from the sublime to the mundane- that we are firmly rooted in this thought. Most always we have no clue as to how to decifer them- and we don't even pretend to. We are happy to just be the recipicents or listeners to this stuff. Sometimes we try to glean some kind of spiritual wisdom, and sometimes we do. But most of the time, there is nothing but pure spirit training going on. That is to say, we think our spritual ears are just being tuned. Perhaps one day, intuitively we will hear and listen and act and prevent or cause something the right direction. But as of now, we just enjoy on being let in on a cosmic chord. We don't think there is anything much it is trying to tell us but we just delight in the hearing.

Today, I am packing for my 'already deemed by God' workshop in Apalachicola in landscape painting. The story of how this occured fits into the definition above. Maybe soon I will tell that story. But today, I went over my paints for my palette - I so carefully ordered online (it was HARD to do) and I found one I did not have! I was mad because hard as I try, I miss stuff....anyway, I thought, go online and see if there is a color close to it and maybe you have that.....I googled the color of paint and pressed the images button so I could get the picture of the color- all I really wanted. And LO! I got two pictures of paint and the rest were photographs of the venues they painted in the workshop last year in Apalachicola and pictures of my teacher's palette, and photos of him and chatting and visiting with another artist, RICHARD SCHMID !
http://www.richardschmid.com/and I was enthralled, thrilled and exceedingly nervous. Totally humbled. It was downright WEIRD that when googling a color of paint I get all this Albert Handell http://www.alberthandell.com/mainpage.htm stuff, photos of him and friends, his very own used palette of colors....and photos of places we are going! Like a view into the future! Some things have happened to get in the way of my going next week- but I am sure what God wants me to do, I will do. I am sure this trip will happen. Hey, that reminds me...instead of the bumper sticker you usually see mine will say "Trip Happens". ( because the sh*t already has)

Anyway, I am full of anticipation and anxiety over this event. I am humble and scared. I want to do this for God because what really can we ever do for the the one who created and is a part of EVERYTHING? Not much, but we can bow in worship and live into our gifts he has given us- we can seek Him in all things. Let's see what He is going to do with me. With us. I think it is going to be great.

William Slocumb outside Ashley McLean Antiques

Japanese Viburnum

Still Life with Japanese Eggplant

Center of Attention

Crawford Wearing Vincent Hancock's Gold Medal