still too busy

a waterfall has replaced the block

ok in no particular order (or state of finish as these are all random shots of the work i been doing lately..none of them are finished in these pictures though) here is some of the color work i have been doing.
i would say that the muse has returned and the flood gates have opened.....
now where does that leave me on the duck book? ahem...... slightly behind again as usual. but in my defense....... i have been working on the second draft--- and i hope to get that done by friday.....maybe
at least i hope so
i may have to break to do the taxes
i emailed the tax guy but i have a bad feeling about him and the taxes this year

now as to the drawings....if there are a preponderance of squirrels....... yeah i know.. i would imagine that in a while there will be a glut of bunnies or mice or something .........you know how these things go right? i explore a theme....... (that sounds about right for what i've been doing huh?)

so anyway this is why no one's heard from me for a while. i suppose you all will forgive me right?
oh and in other topics......this election crap is driving me nuts so i really haven't been too happy about all that lately- another reason i've had nothing to say

as soon as the sun comes up

i hope to sit down and do some work

if i am still blocked, i am going to just do some color charts

i still have town errands.....po first
but we'll see

over the weekend we got duck crates cleaned.
i got myself soaked when i was hosing out the crates, and the hose slipped..
it's all bernie's fault i got soaked (it's my story and i'm going with that)
since he had WARM water on for the duck ponds......and it took a bit for me to register that i was getting WET....as i was finally warm!

see how i justified that?


now in other news, we ran out of wood.....(just like i said we would .....so does someone tall with glasses listen to me???? )

i have to call the wood guy today i suppose
we scrounged around out back and picked up some dead fall and some logs we'd cut off some downed trees and i am burning that right now but i sure would like a nice big load of split logs right about now


i uploaded a beginning of the hawk i am going with...and some photo's of my studio helper for this week.... (fawn is taking a break) ....little blue eyes has been talking to me and hanging around with me almost non stop lately......so here is her 'helping' mom

oh i also ordered leek seeds and (since i've been lazy and behind on starting) leek sets.....
the garden still has some leeks and some chard, carrots, garlic and onions in it...
i am about to add more leeks, carrots, spinach..... it's been such a mild winter

ok the light is coming up.....so i have got to go

take good care everyone

soooo down to the wire and i've got writers AND artist block

and a materials problem....my paints keep chipping off the duralar
add to this all the rain, the spring fever etc
and we have one unhappy artist...with a gapping hole in her book

however knitting is going swimmingly! i finished the cream and sugar cowl in record time...out of sunna from spirit trail in a deep red/maroon color that works quietly with my charcoal wool town coat
now i'm back to the gold fish shawl
and beading
then i'm mopping up the UFO bag
in between drawings

i also had an epiphany.. about my art school and my education- i don't remember a watercolor class!
if there was one...... i didn't take it
so i have been learning stuff on my own through trial and error......
well i finally figured out that i needed to look up information on maskoid and boy was that amazing
turns out i was on the right track but i picked up a few tricks along the way- which saved me a LOT of money that i would have wasted on ruined papers
1) winsor newton makes a colorless mask that is good for 'soft' sized paper
2) frisket paper needs to have the edges sealed with white mask
3) soap a brush and then dip it in the maskoid
4) 140-300 pound paper resists the mask damage the most
5) there WILL be damage on the paper surface from the mask ( here i was kicking myself silly)

now some of the trial and error things....... the use of the toothbrush to splatter mask so it acts like snow... yeah i reinvented the wheel there.........
and i had an inkling that i could mask some colors out......say in the northern lights but i didn't do it
the ducks i ruined....... i should have used frisket...and sealed the edges with white mask instead of painting them all over with mask

so now i am wondering.....what else could i have possibly missed by not having a watercolor class in art school....
i remember we did oils
and got full instructions in etching ( gees i love etching...i would so love to do it again)
but we only got a smattering in 'water' mediums......and that covered acrylics at the time
they treated watercolor as paintings poor half sister
and basically ignored it
we did get instruction in gouashe... but only in commerical art

oye
either way it's all good right???

someone want to please tell me that?

still busy

still drawing (scrapped the last one but did a much different one....and now i hate hawks)

still trying to come up with a card line....
that's not easy for me at the moment (once i dig into it though it will be....that's how these things always are)

i do need to talk to someone who can tell me about die cutting machines that i can program myself to cut around my own designs and drawings
as well as cutting basic shapes out of chipboard

in other news, the weather here is getting a bit warmer
and we've run out of wood....JUST like i told bernie we would
we burn 5 full cords a year here due to antique windows that seriously need replacing
i need to find yet another wood guy
the last one had good wood --- great wood actually but his '3' cords was more like 1.5 cords
the guy before him had 3 full cords but his wood was shit

can't i find someone who has full cords and good wood for a fair price?

anyway..... i also have spring fever BAD....seriously BAD
so bad i am thinking of making a terrarium and sticking frogs in it!
or putting up the fishtank and getting fish! (we have no room for either)
although maybe a hanging terrarium without frogs would work?

so far i have resisted both impulses.

i've also did some sunscreen research...only to find out that my current one is woefully inadequate.
so i ordered new mineral sunscreens online...these have zinc.
i would rather have had titanium
i have to order the nanomicron titanium and make my own i suppose
and the new standards appear to be 18-20% mineral particles
ok i can do that

so chickies there it is....i haven't abandoned you all....i've not forgotten
i have been absurdly busy
dealing with normal household issues and trying to hit deadlines....as well as a reticent hawk that was quite a great deal of trouble to capture on paper

right now i am struggling with my aversion to color in my work- i do need to do some color work
but as usual.....i start and think...... 'this is all too distracting from the image'

hahahaha
oye

happy happy V day to you

me? well the muse struck again..... but something tells me it's going to be a LONG long drawing....
i have three layouts on the drafting table and this one i actually like..... the others i like the IDEA of.....but i don't think they work for this story.......

this one however seems to my eye as the 'right' one

we had a good weekend....... bernie got some of the studio done....i worked on the duck manuscript and next i have to scan work that is getting printed up for the meeting i have to schedule at the end of the month

so for now......this is what's on my board for the next while........

maybe i should have curled the wings forward a bit more???

OYE

happy heart day to you all

1977

on this day.......we were married.

no one thought it would last
we didn't think so either
things were very rough for us

but here we are
still married.......still in love
we've had our ups and downs...........

somehow we continued to love, learn, grow.........

i've discovered strengths i didn't know i had
he's learned he can be strong and steadfast

we've built a life just the right size for us two

and bernie, i love you more today then i did when i married you
and i know (cause you told me yesterday) that you feel the exact same way about me!

happy anniversary nooggums.......

newer work

however i don't know if i like it so i am redoing it!
i already have the second one on the drafting table
and have plans for a third plus color work

now this weekend (our anniversary) bernie decided he is going to help me with the big stuff in the studio
which is a very good thing.....however it also means down time.
which i really don't have time for
good thing i already have a decent backlog of paintings ready or i would be even more worried then i am normally
i am however seeing this project wrapping up. which is always sad but it a good thing too. that means it's almost complete! and i am thinking about what is coming next
no i'm not totally sure yet
i'll see after  i have the meetings with the potential new client- as if i get that account, well that changes what i will be doing,  won't it?

i would imagine however that a second book will be in the works as i doubt i can stop myself.
there are more stories and more drawings
so maybe another one no?

ok so i showed you mine.....now show me YOURS.........

FINALLY a night's sleep!

we drove the new van around a tiny bit yesterday (food shopping ......woohoo what a wild life we lead!)

bernie adjusted the seat and now i can't use the brakes without breaking my hip!

ok so back to the drawing board so to speak

right now he's doing wood
and we are running up to get a new dishwasher in a bit
then i can do dishes (the new one won't be installed for a while) and then maybe draw?

in duck news.... both little girls are laying, and both little girls loves them some momma.....
and amelia gave her daddy duckie kisses last night (she nibbled his hand and jacket cuffs- remember now these guys can and do bite.... they have serrated beaks and a small tooth on the end of thier upper beak- she was so soft and gentle that it tickled and not a scratch on him)
you know....i really do love these ducks so much, they are so much better then dogs
even with all the PMS they do have and the rapid mood swings and the liquid manure.......
well i do love them when they are sweet

did i tell yous that due to getting points back, i threw the van on the CC?
hahahahaha
yup i did
and paid it off already
i love stuff like that
and the reward points...... well i could get a new camera or a temporary car port for the new van

it's cold out today here... ice on the ponds, but i put falstaff out anyway, as he's been doing so well lately.
bernie is bringing extra wood in and i have the stove stoked

i cast on a new shawlette i nicknamed the 'goldfish' shawlette.....it's the bright yellows/golds/oranges of  goldfish
so i am putting aquarium plant bright spring green beads on it... and also further up, aquarium blue beads....it's fun!
it may be my last shawlette for the winter....we'll see
i still need to do mittens and hats and a few sweaters

in studio work, now that i have the new van.....i plan on getting some of the things i've been painting printed.
i have to source large envelopes of about 4'' wide by like 16'' long... with a cello window would be good too
but really the best would be right now to get back to work
oye
i hate interruptions

next week is our anniversary...we've been married since 1977
bernie said the sweetest thing to me this morning

he told me that he loved me so much more now then when we married......he said that he loved me then but NOTHING like the way he loves me now.
i guess i grew on him like a fungus....hahahahahahaha
actually i do know what he means
he's my family
i do remember blood family of course..... but it seems so far away to me now.
and really the only constant for way more then half my life has been him
we have ups and downs.... but we've managed somehow to stick it out
and we've grown as people
i couldn't ever imagine life without him...... i don't know where i leave off and he begins!
and sooooooo many people never ever thought we'd make it.....ha

(and it was while getting his anniversary card that i got a new client lead!)

oh and one more thing..... getting the new van while totally traumatic for me (i soooooooo hate change) actually worked out better, smoother, and all around easier then i ever expected!!!!
it's just that i really hate change....
and my old van had seen me through thea's illness..... dad's, kisses........... it had hauled sheep, ducks, chickens and pigs......along with hay, plywood.... etc
it took us to rhinebeck, out to the farms....... and to KY and VA to see family and get thaddeaus....
there are a LOT of memories tied up in that van

but i guess the new van will make us new memories... and rhinebeck won't be a problem at all this year
possibly even MDSW .......we'll see

ok folks til next time....... and there are pictures of some of the girls for you folks to see

and tomorrow is the big day

we pick up the new van
i am very excited as i know that i can get the animals to the vet, get to the doctor
get to rhinebeck etc without worry

meanwhile i have been busy. drawing yes
writing ........ahem ........well yes i have been

doing housework......yeah not so much
knitting .....well i did caston another forget me knot ....this time in goldfish colors
and i need to make a decision about the beads for it.....FAST
i have a spring green that would work but i would prefer aqua matt

you know.....to look like water and pond plants.
well i have a bit of time, so i may go and see about getting some aqua matt beads

in duckie news..... falstaff has come back from the nearly dead!
he is so old, and the cold was bothering him
but yesterday he was his old chipper womanizing self
telling the girls how he was thier stud muffin!

poor malcom is getting a complex!

meanwhile the little girls are taking time out to graze, and i am encouraging that as they are laying.
the big girls are still fighting
my discussions with them all is going something like this:

'MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMMM- she touched me' (this would be phoebe)

'I DID NOT TOUCH HER MOM, SHE is LYING' (this would be lilli)

girls stop fighting (this would be me.....)

~~~ sounds of honking and feather flapping~~~~
GIRLS STOP FIGHTING.....

i'm going to get the hose
ok i got the hose now cool off  ~~~ sounds of water being sprayed on fighting ducks~~~~

ENOUGH

'mom i loves you the best'  (this is from both of them once i separate them)

AAAAAAAAAAAACCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCKKKKKKKKKK this is me being frustrated

oye

at least the little girls are getting along.

now i had planned to talk about lofty things like 'free will'
and 'respect for other's choices'

in light of the Komen foundations move to defund planned parenthood
i am very angry with Komen now...as planned parenthood was the ONLY help i was able to get when i had the bilateral lumpectomies in 02... we had no insurance and bernie was on workmen's comp and CRUTCHES having gotten his leg blown up at work (we really should have sued the company for negligence)
no one would talk to us or work with us..... planned parenthood was there for me
they arranged the mammogram, ultrasound, stereotactic biopsy, the bilateral biopsy, and the follow up care...they paid for it as well since we did NOT have insurance and had exhausted our emergency fund as bernie had been out of work for three months on crutches with daily PT.

unfortunately in america, health care is taken as a privilege not a right- and the result is.... people die
people are disabled.
and health insurance companies are getting wealthier and wealthier ( maybe we should all invest in shares in the insurances?)

i don't know what the answer is....... i think maybe germany and finland have better health care models that we may want to take a look at .......but in the meantime
we need organizations like planned parenthood..... or more women will die of breast cancer from lack of access to care

we have a new (to us) van

 as some of you folks know......who've followed me a while, i have a strong fiscally conservative streak. no doubt inherited from my dad. although my mother was pretty careful with money too.
i tend to 'wear it out, use it up, or do without' and i tend to save money for emergencies. (well so much for that, as the emergency fund bought the van)
i can't see buying a brand new vehicle...... they are way too expensive and they depreciate too fast- i also wished that an american car was as well rated at this kia
i also wish it was red......but it isn't ( i would have loved a little red van)
now it also has a trailer hitch and what looks like a towing package....bernie even commented on the beefed up suspension..
so we have a new to us van
i did discover that there are really some good bargains on vans out there..... so i am thinking that maybe after a year or two we may get either a second one for bernie or a pickup for him (i am thinking manure hauling)- although with the trailer hitch, i could get a little trailer for that.
i am still not used to the idea.....and i am still upset about the emergency fund......but as bernie did point out....i will build it back up (although i really wish that i didn't have to hit it, but the van savings always seemed to get used for small emergencies)
so meet my new ride.....

a roundabout.....

it's been busy
and a muddle of good news, bad news and just plan life


in work.... well i am drawing again..i was off to a rocky start..
so bad that bernie asked me 'what the hell is that'
i said ducks and he said NO WAY, they are really shit ducks

yup they were
then i did a fast duckling study really fast
took like 5 minutes and the watercolors ran
but it worked
and that is the important part (and if you look on the easel you will see my reference photo i drew off.....that is thumbprint as a duckling)

i also took thaddeaus inspecting the easel when i started set up.... he approved and looked out the window.... fawn has already claimed my drafting chair as her own again.....with delight. i think she is one of my muses.



some of the really bad news is...one of my friend's is losing his partner of 32 years to colon cancer
it's a torturous thing to watch
and all i can do is talk to him
by email
even the phone isn't a good idea right now because of the amount of things going on with all this.
i cry for them both

other bad news, my van is completely toasted
completely
totally
and i am not only heartbroken but we are not without transportation of our own
bernie does have a unit for back and forth to work
however if we need to take me to the doctor or he wants a day off.....we are totally screwed
we started to look for a used van.....and wasted all day saturday after one with seriously low mileage
only to have a bait and switch pulled on us
we walked away

some of the good news? another friend who's husband had colon cancer..is now cancer FREE.....thank goodness and the universe
i am so thrilled for them both you all have no idea

and i also haven't missed the irony of one of my friends leaving and one staying who dealt with this disease.

so there you folks are........all caught up with my life mostly
the no van thing is driving me nuts and i am worried terribly about so many things

take good care you all

a sunny mid winter afternoon

so much has been happening.....

and i haven't really been around

now yesterday i was cleaning the studio in earnest..... got a bunch of stuff done
i could still use someone who is taller and stronger then me to help but as of right now.....well...........
so i am doing it myself and struggling
i have had a bit of an epiphany, as to layout i think- however i may have to take one of my BIG shelves apart and put wheels on the other half to make short shelves..... as that will help not to cut off my light into the studio...........

i am trying to find a way to add two wing chairs to the studio...... so that i can knit and bernie can watch tv in comfort
i am thinking however for that to happen we really need to put an addition on.....still thinking about a covered deck for a three season room....... and/or a sort of shed addition on the north side or both

meanwhile it's very cold here....bitter bitter cold
i am going to put the little girls and malcom out in the far back pen but together
and lilli with falstaff in the front.....phoebe in the a frame

in knitting...... while i haven't gone to the post office since tuesday...... AS of tuesday my beads still weren't in....
so annis sits
however kleio is almost done! i KNOW .......that surprised me too as i didn't really want to knit it....but needed something really easy to do while waiting for the beads
i'm on the 5th row of the 17 row lace insert...... i did the latvian braid.....which i didn't realize was even part of this pattern until i came to the part where it said 'braid'
hahahahahah

good thing i know latvian braids
it actually doesn't look too bad
the colors are a sort of prune purple and a sort of grayed out lavender....... (for the lace and edging)
and they work in a weird sort of way...... think goth/victorian mourning.......

ummmmmmm there is more but i am running really late today so forgive me and off i go

til next time

oye.........

this past two weeks was one of losses, fears, threats and problems for quite a few folks i care about
some people lost love ones.....
some people had life threatening things happen either to themselves or loved ones
some had BAD family things come up

it seems to me that if i could have split me in four parts there still wouldn't be enough to try and help
i felt so helpless too....

now yesterday one of my friends had some family issues and needed to chill for a while
she also needed a friend with her
since neither of us drink......we went shopping

me: bundt pan, books, beads, two umbrellas, some heart decorations for the white tree
her: purse (coach purse)

we were running around in some awful weather, but i did get home before bernie (by like 5 minutes)
we had come home earlier but just to stoke the stove and put the ducks in...then left again
there are times when folks shouldnt' be alone you know.....

as you all know i am such a home body, and it's not easy for me to NOT be home after dark
at least without bernie with me
but all in all we had a bit of fun
i made her laugh several times
and another good thing.....the house didn't burn down!

meanwhile we did get the phone/isp thing straight more or less
just in time for the weather to turn bitter cold again

now on to the seed orders

and how was everyone's week?

no i didn't disappear

just busy, and it also looks like we got a raccoon in the chimney for the furnace...........
damn thing's been waking me up a LOT
the sweep is coming wen.
that's the earliest
meanwhile the woodstove chimney needs to be cleaned.....yeah there's a surprise....
cause we got wet wood and it's not burning right- bernie is doing it sunday


meanwhile in knitting news.....my beads i ordered december 28 from fusion beads haven't arrived yet...... they shipped december 29...... i have another week to wait it would seem
i have to find someone that either has them closer to home or ships faster no?
meanwhile annis languishes for the want of 10 beads........... 10 TEN........ are you kidding me?
seriously?

oh man
ok in duck news........ malcom has finally learned his place in the flock...... he is now able to be handled but does not try to make the human's his duck bitch
we will see how that works during breeding season but so far that's what's up

we also switched ISP/Phone providers......from PTD to verizon
PTD doubled our price......
i asked for a customer retention specialist and was basically laughed at
so i called verizon.... after all isn't that what a free market is all about?

if more folks did that we'd get better customer service
so yesterday we had it switched
we're mostly ok now
i think
i am going to keep looking for other ISP/phone services to switch to as the current ones screw up
meanwhile mostly all is well in chez violet......
as best as i know anyway

so i didn't forget yous
but i am not all here right now either

so far........ yeah i ain't liking 2012

oh man
i have to unsnarl a mess with our checking account, and a savings account transfer that didn't.
get our new medical insurance number, and reschedule my labs, doctor and ultrasound appointments
i did get my mini hoop houses up in the garden
it was 50 degrees out when i got them up......right now i think it's like 12 out...so not a moment too soon huh?
i am sorting and storing my yarn stash
in which i have discovered my love for tweed, all things hot colors.... heathers......(in purples and reds)
lace and finger weights
sock yarns that due to one sock eating CAT i won't make into socks......
oye
and i still have stash to bring down to the new bins
which i could probably get another 6 of and still not have enough room.....
i don't think there is anymore yarn on it's way to me but i am not totally sure about that either...
this is all part of my 'reorganize' the studio plan

apparently the new year has brought a drifting of some friendships for me
and possibly some new friends..... and i keep remembering
'a reason, a season or a lifetime'
it seems a few folks reasons and/or seasons are over in my life

the new year also brings along the seed catalogs.......and i am on a quest for leek seeds this year..
i would like a long season winter keeper, and a fall maturing one i think
i also am considering a bigger hoop/green house and even more winter hardy greens
and fruit trees, maybe some nut trees.....
i wish i could move our shagbark hickory in further on the property....it's out near the road and the township butchers it unmercifully

if i see a seedling in the garden it's getting moved up to the front yard i think....
so anyone in zone 6 want to tell me maybe what is good growing for your area in fruit and nuts?
i am so hoping the elderberry took..... and i am looking to add a paw paw, pear, peach, another apple, cherry and some nuts as well.

well folks.... i need to make the coffee now.....i didn't forget you, but we've been busy and tired
(midnight road call sunday night, got to the place where we were told the unit was......no unit...they'd left!- no sleep for either of us)
so until next time

the last post of the year

first off happy new year everyone
i wish you all happiness, health and peace

i wish you good food, good friends, and much laughter
preferably all at once

i'm sitting here in the studio listening to the budgies chirp happily. watching my woodstove struggling to stay lit (it's really warm out)

bernie is layering the ham potato and cheese casserole that i make a lot in the winter-
*** super simple....make a medium white sauce.....add a ton of extra sharp cheddar and some colby jack to it
chop a good ham up into cubes
wash and peel a few pounds of yukon golds
and layer it all like lasagna
then bake at 350 until it's all cooked and bubbly....and you can't stand it anymore!
then eat until you explode

yup it really is that good

i spent part of the day putting yarn in bins
yarn that i acquired this past year (think of it as a 401k for knitters)
i spent another part of the day out in town where i apparently made a new friend
as well as got a LIME GREEN (don't you all faint) 3'' binder for knitting patterns......
i may need to get another one
i have a LOT of knitting patterns

in knitting, i am doing annis 
i am doing it in a wonderful red berry plum purpley color with perfectly matching beads in place of nupps.....see it in the picture?
those beads match PERFECTLY...you should see them in person..so i had to order more as i ran out with only 10 more nupps to go...yup
i am missing 10 beads.....10 BEADS....!  i did order more but until they come i am sorta shit out of luck.... so while i was going to nupp instead, i am realizing that i would never be happy with the mix of nupp and beads in a shawlette that is the perfection of color that this one is........ so it's waiting and waiting for the beads....
oye
and it was such a fun knit!

meanwhile since i am doing stuffs ......... i am also going through stuff and seeing what i can toss
there isn't much since i been collecting for certain projects for years..
but there IS a lot of boxes and such..mainly cause they have our names on them
we plan on taking care of that this year.....we plan on a burn barrel as the shredder sure couldn't handle it all

now just to keep things interesting.... here are two pictures of my silly duck lillianna, taking a SHOWER in the rain.... now normally my ducks hate the rain but i have lilli in with falstaff and she doesn't want to go under the roofed area cause he is in there
so she sat in the rain feeling oh so sorry for herself and took a shower.....
i got weird ducks

ok folks..... this is it...happy new year
i'll talk to you in the new year
so until next year

be good
be safe and be healthy

26 years

ago today my mom crossed over into the light
16 years ago today was the last time i saw my dad alive

it's a sad day, but also a happy day.....as they are all together over there and waiting patiently for me and bernie when it's our time

i spent the day making a present for a friend of mine
i will show it to you all AFTER i give it to her
as i wouldn't put it past her trying to see it early

i had a very good time making it
my mom was right, learn something new when you are sad

i did today
thanks mom

i miss my folks. life is different without them
it was rough losing mom right before the holidays......we buried her christmas eve

for years i hated the holidays.....then i started to adjust to life without my parents
one of the things i found helps the most is my yearly 'cards'
folks that i don't talk to regularly get them
as long as i am busy creating, it isn't so bad

now if i don't talk to all you folks
have wonderful holidays no matter what ones you celebrate
hug your family
kiss your partners
and enjoy your pets and friend

til next time

vi

cold frames, hoop houses, greenhouses and extensions to the season

all winter long i plot my garden for next year.....and lament the lack of cold frames or other winter protection
i do some smallish hoops over isolated areas of my garden beds,- but oh to have a real cold frame and a real hoop house or greenhouse

(real gardeners know this feeling so well- welcome kindred spirits)
today as i survey my frozen little garden, which needs more hay and more leaves and more compost and more protection....... i see so much that yet needs doing

and i am planning.....

new beds... enough for 30 pepper plants
new beds...... enough for 150 beans
new beds........ enough for more garlic, onions, leeks.... broccoli
area for small dwarf apples and pears.....

and i dream of spring