The Lion with Flare

I just purchased a new App called Flare. It's for my Mac and gives me the opportunity to edit my photos with a Hipstamatic feel. The above photo is my first attempt. I love Hipstamatic and thrilled with the new program. Speaking of my Mac, I'm in the process of downloading the big cat "Lion". I've done my homework and read a lot of reviews. I also checked the compatiblity of my printers and photoshop. Last night we went to the Apple store and I played with it. I'm a little nervous but ready! Nervous because I'm not sure I want the magic trackpad, but ready to do what I have to do to make it work. I'll let you know.....

Update: I loaded the Lion and all went well except ..... my printer didn't work after the update. I did fix it! (it only took about 2 hours) I'm having fun exploring the new features.

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The Locket

I've had the locket for a long time. The pictures are of my brother and me. It was my mother's and supposedly she gave it to my father. This I find hard to believe. I can't imagine him wearing a locket. He just wasn't that kind of guy. I remember when the picture of my brother was taken. One summer we lived at Rockaway Beach. My mother had a hamburger stand near the boardwalk and we lived in an old Victorian rooming house. I don't know how long we stayed, but to a child it seemed like forever. Oh, and I have to mention that my father wasn't with us. The picture of my brother was taken on the beach. I recently started wearing the locket again. When I open it it makes me stop and remember a time in my life that was kind of crazy. That's how it was with my mother. Kind of crazy!






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Shoes, again

We have a Good Will superstore in town. I have to confess that I go there about once a week and that's when I saw these shoes. They are beautifully made with genuine leather soles and brand new to boot!!! No, to shoe!!! Anyway I tried them on and they were a little too big. Oh well I thought, I won't buy them. I was quite pleased with myself for resisting them. Of course later on I was mad at myself for not buying them. Did I mention that they cost $6??? When I went back a few days later they were still there!! Well you know that this time there was no hesitation. I've been thinking of them as art. When I see something that's made as beautifully as these shoes are, what else can they be? As for them being a little big - I'm going to wear them with socks. I can't wait!

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In My Room

I am transitioning to summer. I put away the bright pillows and most of the nicknacks. My curtains are white linen. Since they've been up all year, I'm thinking about washing them. Looking at my Uncle's painting, I feel that I should move it. The oranges that I love seem out of place now that I'm in summer mode. It's interesting how I'm affected by color. In the winter, in the midst of all the snow, I relished my shocking pink Christmas tree. It warmed me and made me feel happy. Now I need the white to cool me. As I sit at my desk, I can see my new fountain. It's right outside my window. This is my space, the place where I create, the place where I am home. I suppose it would be nice to have my own separate room, but I can't imagine anything that would be better than "my room".




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Weeding

My friend Jean told me that she had some flowers for my garden. Jean and I work together decorating our church. She was thinning out her perennials and wanted to give some to me. She came over at about 11:30 am on Saturday and we talked about where to put the flowers. We started weeding my flowerbed. She stayed all day! Weeding!
We shared a pizza and she told me stories about her childhood. Most of her stories were about the flowers that her father grew. I added a couple stories of my own. As a child I lived in Brooklyn, NY and there weren't that many flowers around. We did have snowball bushes in the back yard. Jean left at 6:30 and we had weeded most of the garden. I bought a couple of plants today to add to my newly rejunivated garden. I'm looking forward to sitting out on my deck and having a glass of iced tea and I'll definitely invite Jean to visit with me. Thanks, Jean!





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Watering Can Study

I did a quick study for my next painting. I used a multicolor "confetti" pencil.

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Fountains

One of the assignments for my garden class was to paint a water feature. I went back to Shakespeare's Garden to take some pictures. There was this big, kind of industrial looking fountain right next to the door to the shop. Even though there were many beautiful, ornate fountains, this one captured my attention. It is big and plain, with a beautiful patina. I chose to paint it for my class. I've also decided to get a fountain for my Zen garden and maybe to do some planting. I am definitely looking forward to the summer.




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