Getting Away

A little bird watching the goings on as I sit and have my morning coffee.

The dirt road my parents
residence is on.

I've never been a landscape painter. I'm not the type to sit quietly for hours sketching from nature or plein air painting. I like to be around people, I like lots of activity, I am truly a city girl however you want to look at it. But lately I've been feeling like all the activity is a bit much, and I'm longing for some quiet... so with last week being a holiday weekend here in Canada, I decided to pack an overnight bag and head out to my parent's place a few hours drive east of here.

To say this place is isolated is really putting it mildly. It's like going to a cottage. I haven't been here for a while... the winter was long and there was a lot of snow, and the last time I was out here in the winter the car got stuck and the tow-truck driver refused to come down to get me out in case HE got stuck. They're on a dirt road. They have a well. They have no neighbours close enough to even catch a glimpse of their existence. My sister (who actually does paint wildlife and nature), came with me, and the two of us went off exploring with my camera.... trying not to slip on the rocks, step into any holes camouflaged by rotting vegetation, or touch anything poisonous.

A large shelf mushroom growing on a rotting tree stump. We looked it up online... apparently we can "eat, with caution". Uh.... I think I'd rather just pass, thanks.

I didn't dare try to climb up here... 

It wouldn't have surprised my parents one bit if one of us had run back needing assistance to help the other out of some kind of "situation". We're both a little klutzy... actually I think my other sister can be included in that as well... and we've all spent more than our fair share of time in emergency rooms. We managed to escape unscathed this time, and I got a few nice photos to add to my growing collection. I'm still posting to my Blipfoto page... albeit sporadically... but I got more shots than my account allows me to upload. I thought I could share them here.

As I was lying in bed this morning listening to the birds through my open window (my favourite part of summer... being able to sleep with the windows open. Of course that means being woken up at  5a.m. by the birds... but whatever...), I was thinking about maybe trying to paint a few landscapes. It would be something different, and it could help with my non-objective work by focusing more on composition. I'm sure I can somehow make it work for me... though it might take a few practice runs to figure it out. Fortunately (??? ok, I will admit it would be better if I had actually SOLD all these paintings instead of having this huge inventory, but at least I don't have to panic when it comes time to hang a show) I have more than enough work around to cover any upcoming shows I've committed to, so I have some time to play and explore something new. It's been a while since I've had the luxury. I think I shall enjoy this...

Oh, and by the way... If you are interested in checking out my musician or dancer series in real life, I've updated my website with all my upcoming exhibits. And if you should see anything you wish to own, please contact me.

This sky... wow. 

This little bird spent a fair bit of time hanging around the bird feeder. He's crazy fast... missed my shot the first few times I caught sight of him, but I knew if I just waited, he'd be back. 

I don't see bees that often these days... but out here the flowers were not store bought, so maybe they are a little safer...

ok, this bird is actually in my own backyard... she has a nest in the tree outside my dining room window. And I've found that she really doesn't welcome spectators... there's a lot of swooping at my head going on. She'll get used to me... eventually....