I've Been Working on the Railroad

The artist and new painting owner Terry Klassen pose with the painting.

     In fact, the railroad is a caboose and it is finished and already in the hands of private collectors, Dennis and Terry Klassen.  Dennis took the original 
reference photo during a trip they took to the East Coast.  This caboose was found near Woodstock, NY.
     
     This painting is entitled "Recluse Caboose."

Twenty days across the U.S.A., with a Yetti

    Today, I met Cathy Short, a writer, who is traveling with a Yetti.  Point of fact, he is her very own Yetti.      Cathy's dog, Yetti is one of a relatively small breed of  Finnish Lapphund ("Lappie") which have been herding reindeer for ages.  This breed was recognized by the American Kennel Club in 2011.   Yetti is double-coated and is a great companion dog. 

Cathy Short is taking a long trip, 20 days, road-tripping across the U.S.A. and back.  Today is only day one of her journey which takes her from Oregon to the San Francisco bay area.  Tomorrow, she expects to visit the Grand Canyon.  Cathy is a kick and I wish I could have gotten to know her better before she had to rush off.  In North America, you are not highly likely to see a Finnish Lapphund ...Unless, of course, you catch Cathy as she flies by on a highway near you.

Baptism at the Beach

     Seeking a time of respite and Between visits, I decided to drive over to the beach.  I parked in a nearly empty parking space at a stretch of beach, across from the street the Ventura Harbor Village.  After a few minutes of "rearranging the furniture" inside of Sally Forth, numerous car doors were heard closing nearby.  This continued for probably ten more minutes before my curiosity took over.  I stuck my head out the door and asked a couple of passersby what what going on.
     "There's going to be a baptism at the beach," exclaimed the woman, "fourty people!"

     This was not to be missed, I was sure.  I grabbed my camera, the pooch and bounded out to the beach, where I watched the whole thing.  I loved it.  Ventura Missionary Church, I was told, was sponsoring this joyous event.  I was pleased to pray along with a pastor and congregants the prayer of dedication over the participants.  We sang praises to the King of Kings, then into the harbor they made their way as three teams did the dunking.  I cheered along with the crowd as the baptized rose up from the Pacific.  (These photos only show the crowd because I began videotaping the action and cannot get the videos to load.)

     It was a big thrill for me to share in the joy of other believers who also seek to follow the example of the Messiah Jesus Christ (Yeshua).  I was smiling all afternoon and thanking God for putting me in the right place at the right time to share in His work.

The Painted Dog

     For some time now, I have spoken of my trusty miniature weinerdoggie, Holly.  She lives in her own little world and is friend to no man, unless they have food. Holly travels with me in Sally Forth and has her own doggie carrier parked in the passenger seat so she can snooze or sniff the world from a higher vantage point.
     Recently, while I was painting outdoors at Old Paths Assembly, Holly focused her concentration on watching me paint.  She also, found time to chase a chicken or turkey or goose or jackrabbit or some passerby.  After a short run (for she has very short legs), she returned to my side.  The normal pattern of things, however, was not so convenient while I was painting with the oil-based and cement paints.

Stunt Doxie poo-roll reinactment.  Do not try this at home.

     Each time Holly returned to me, she seemed to brush up against the painting surface and end up with some paint on her fur.  By the end of a couple of weeks, she had smudges of several colors on her back and rump.  The acrylic, I could scrub off.  The oil paint came off in her usual course of baths and daily life but the cement paint held fast for nearly a month. 
     On our last visit to O.P.A. and while painting the monkey bars, and continuing to try to UN-paint Holly...  She took her freshly clean little self and rolled in some goose poo.  Sometimes there are risks of being an artist's dog.  Constant dog baths are one of those hazards.
     Or, maybe it was turkey poo.

Paint, Glorious Wet Paint!

     My fingers have missed the watercolors.  There is always so much that gets in the way of painting...  Many things to see and do.  The watercolors, my old friends are like the elderly aunt who squishes your cheeks.  I am reluctant to visit for lots of reasons.  But, when I go, her house is full of the smell of freshly baked yummies and a generous soul.
     Today, I put aside my reasons and excuses and got my paint wet.  I summoned the courage to work on an almost-finished painting which had sat idle for a year or more.  Color danced about the paper on the ends of my brushes.  The results were yummy.  Perhaps, this week, I will be able to finish up the details and sign it.

     Today, I am grateful for this talent with which God has blessed me as well as the years of opportunity and study which has added interest to that original deposit.

Polls, Planters and Pickled Watermelon Rinds

Masking and painting begins on the monkey bars.

First there was the planter.  On successive visits to the Stanfields and Old Paths Assembly, I painted three pieces of playground equipment, some poles and door jams.  For the metal, an oil-based paint was required.  I am not used to working with oil-based, exterior paints, but I learned that they stay soft for a long time before they dry.  I also learned that they are a great collector of gnats and flying bugs who want to make their indelible mark on the world.  (I am looking forward to watercolors again!)   And did I mention that any wet paint near the ground is fair game for a red wienerdoggie to brush up against?

     Some of the paint was probably old or just onery as it wrinkled up like elephant skin when dry.  Kids came to the playground later in the week but did not heed the parental instructions to avoid the soft paint.  They left their impressions on the monkey bars and transferred paint colors to the wrong places, including their clothes.

The Pickled Watermelon Rind man

     However, before I knew what a colossal failure the monkey bar fiasco would become, a search for new colors for the monkey bars led friend Alan Stanfield and I to a local hardware store.  An acquaintance of Alan's came in to invite all takers to taste his wife's recent experiment, canned, pickled watermelon rinds.  I have never in my life wanted to sample such things, but I took the chance here and now.  Maybe it was the paint fumes, but the sample tasted pretty good, if a tad slimy.  I never expected the recipe to include clove.  The man himself, had not tasted the pickles yet.  He was looking for guinea pigs and we were they.  He decided to try them, since we did not keel over, and commented that the rinds were nice and soft and good for a man like himself with no teeth.  That was possibly the highlight of my week!

The Idea Factory

Lee and Debbie in front of a painting by our friend, Sally Miller, in the Hodges' home.

     A visit to another artist's studio enriched me today.  A long-time friend, Lee Hodges, invited me to work in her studio at the beautiful Art Gallery of Grace.  She generously gave me use of any of her art supplies.  We discussed many things and prayed together.  A germ of an idea began to take shape as I sat and stared at my empty table, forming artwork with my mind.
     In the end, I took off my apron and freed myself from the tyranny of needing to produce a piece of art right then.  I sat, walked around, and watched as my future painting began to take shape.  I left Lee's studio with a few notes, a brain full of ideas and a lighter heart.

Holly crept up to see what I was reading at the Gallery.  She is helpful like that.

     Today, I am grateful for a deeper friendship with Lee and for a painting which lies ahead and sends me on an incredible journey!

Girl Time and Apple Crisps

Suz and Liz and apples, and apples, and apples...

  I am encamped in a driveway somewhere near the California coast.  My friend, Suz, has generously offered me her hospitality.  We were just beginning to face the morning when someone new popped into the house.  "Have any coffee?"  No knocking, these are backdoor kind of friends.  So it was - that I made a new friend, Liz. 

     We three later that day teamed up for a traditional and womanly event...the Apple Crisp Association.  How many pans of apple crisp were made, I gave up counting.  After the crisps came the applesauce.  The apples were wonderfully tart and crispy.   I was exhausted!

Teresa, a time to relax.

     Later that day, I enjoyed a dinner with yet another friend, Teresa.  It was good to see her again and just relax and chat. 

     There is something very therapeutic about getting together with the gal pals to make things happen.  I am hoping for many opportunities on this wild and wonderful journey to make new friends and new art...and to see what other plans God has in mind for lil' old me...and you!

"Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you." -- 1 Peter 5:7, The Bible, New International Version