All the Colors of Fall

For more autumn color - click on my Flickr badge - just over there in the right hand sidebar. Or don't, if you don't want to. This is a completely free-choice kind of blog.

COLOR!

I've been on hiatus, checking out the peak of Autumn color in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. We camped out for 3 nights (one of them VERY rainy) and took in the sights - saw 5 (yes, 5!) black bears - 3 adult and 2 cubs, a number of deer, chipmunks and squirrels. One deer wandered very near our campsite this morning, and we watched one squirrel repair it's nest right above our tent site, too. I'll be back with more sketches and paintings soon!

Adrian

Adrian. Cool cat, honors student, current football star, upcoming basketball star. Calls my youngest "rat" and I don't know why - but the young one LOVES it. Quickish study in pencil in large Moleskine sketchbook.

All but one...Done!

My part of the WetCanvas Postcard project is almost finished. I ran out of the postcard sized watercolor block I've been using, so I'll have to go make a Jerry's run before I can be completely done. I really like the format - 5x7 is a nice size to experiment with different things.

This card is based on a Moleskine sketch from a few days ago. Watercolor and Inktense pencils.

A lionfish from a photo I took at the Aquarium in Gatlinburg, TN. Watercolor.

Watercolor. Pig from a reference photo on this past weekend's WDE at WetCanvas. Poem is "The Pig" by Roald Dahl. What a twisted soul his was. But in a really good way, you understand...

Really strange cow. Not sure what all happened here. Watercolor and Inktense pencils, Ink, White Sharpie poster pen. What happens when good hatching goes bad. Really, really bad. But the nose is GREAT. (I say that with all awe and wonder - not pride...please don't get me wrong.)

A watercolor based on a photo I took of my niece, Anna Marie, at the beach. This looks nothing like her. It is BASED on a photo...

YAY!

My Moo cards have arrived - and they are way cool. They look great, they feel great...what a brilliant partnership Flickr has with them!

EDM #63 - Draw items from a nature walk.

I picked these up the other day while walking, and it occurred to me that they might be amongst the items in a challenge...and I was right! So - after many moons of missing out on challenges - here's one done...and in grid-fashion, to boot!

I also carved a new signature stamp out of speedball soft block and tried it out on this page. Whaddya think of it?

Happy Autumn, everyone!

Moleskine large sketchbook, Micron 01 black pen and Derwent Inktense (except on berries - W&N watercolors on that)

Moleskine Pachyderm

Another watercolor for the Weekend Drawing Event at WetCanvas! I'm off the hosting hook this week, but I still managed to squeeze one little painting in. This is in the large Moleskine watercolor sketchbook. Watercolors and micron pen.

I'm Hanging Out a Shingle

Finally, after years and years of expensive higher education, soul-searching, wandering on and off paths, and driving otherwise sane people completely bonkers with my angst and anxiety, I HAVE FINALLY FIGURED OUT WHAT I WANT TO BE WHEN I GROW UP!

Actually, what I have discovered is that it’s something I’ve been doing for a very long time, but I’ve never been paid for it, and now I’m going to have to develop a fee schedule. You see – most of my life, I’ve just thought I was a bossy, know-it-all, opinionated and rather dispassionate woman. What I’ve recently found out however, is that I am a natural-born LIFE-COACH!!

Have you been hearing this term more and more often, like I have? Every where I turn, I hear “life-coach,” “relationship-coach,” or “spirituality-coach.” First of all – there’s the “-coach” thing – but we’ll have to save that for another day. Right now, we need to cover the whole concept of a “life-coach.”

Apparently, our whole society has gotten so whacked out, that we need to pay people to be what our friends, family, and clergy used to be. Whatever happened to calling your parents when you had a major life decision to make? What about calling your life-long friend that has seen you through every heartbreak and triumph? Has anyone ever heard of calling your pastor (priest/rabbi) when you need some solid advice? No? Okay – well, it is time I stepped in.

As a public service, I’ll be stepping up and offering my services at a reduced rate for the month of October. For a very reasonable $400/hour, you can contact me and I’ll tell you what to do in any situation. Starting in November, the rate will be $650/hour, so act now! Just to gain some trust from the general public, here are a few freebies…

1. If your boyfriend treats you badly, cheats on you and lies around instead of working, DON’T MARRY HIM. You can’t change him, you’ll only make yourself miserable. There are plenty of nice men out there – raise your standards.
2. When your children won’t listen to you because they are too busy playing their video games or watching TV, take away the video games and the TV. You are the boss. They are not. You don’t have to be their best friend, just their parent. They don’t have to like you. Did you like your parents when you were their age? Were they right anyway? Use your head!
   
3. Give something to your community. There are a whole lot of people out there who have way less than you do. It doesn’t take much to make a whole lot of difference. Talk to people like they matter, regardless of their station in life. You’ll be amazed at how it changes your life.
   
4. Pray. A lot.
   
5. Call your mom, if she’s living. She knows more than you do.
   
   No kidding…you can trust me…I’m a Professional.
   

watercolor in large Moleskine watercolor sketchbook

Postcards from the Precipice

Well, I couldn't say, from the "edge," now could I? I don't want Carrie Fisher coming to kick me tail. I was watching "Return of the Jedi" yesterday with my Star Wars obsessed children, and was she buff in that movie, or what? I know it's been over 20 years since it was released, but she still kind of scares me.

That has absolutely nothing to do with these images, by the way. Sorry if you were trying to work out the connection. I signed up for a postcard exchange back in January, and I've fallen a bit behind, so I spent the day playing catch-up. I finished 6 (yes, count 'em - 6) postcards today. Each of these is 5x7 inches, watercolor on 140 lb cold press watercolor paper.