Author Archives: Tara Choate

Paris! (Part 4)

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This is my final post in this series. I hope you have enjoyed the journey!

October 8 – Auteuil

If I had once piece of advice to give to horse lovers traveling to Europe, it would be to make time to go to a steeplechase race. Racetracks, in general, really go out of their way to be attractive, so you can see some lovely architecture, landscaping, and flowers. Auteuil seemed to be going out of its way to brand the race day as a family affair, and there were lots of kids activities.

 

The innate pageantry of horse racing is on display with the starts that seem more like an agreement to start running than a blast off. Jockeys guide their mounts to and from the course in a companionable line, knowing that instead of two minutes, they will have portions of an hour to keep up a relationship with their mount.

I had signed up for the “heart of the racecourse” tour, and I was very pleased with the behind-the-scenes access it offered me. It was all in French, but I was (mostly) able to follow along enough to assure myself that the tour guide wasn’t saying anything I didn’t (basically) know. She discussed horse passports, the weight/handicap horses carry, and how jockeys are weighted in. When asked if the horses were “Thoroughbreds” the guide went into a description of the various stud books and how that affected the answer.

Disappointingly, my camera’s battery ran out after a few races, and the backup battery I had brought didn’t want to cooperate. As such, while I got some great photos, I didn’t get nearly as many as I hoped.

October 9 – Bois de Vincennes

While I was feeling better, my cold/sinus infection was still very much present. I went back to the Bois de Vincennes (it really is a large park) to discover the west side.

While in the park, I kept hearing a chain saw. I didn’t think anything of it, but while I was sketching on a bench, I heard a distinctive clompity-clomp. My head snapped up to discover the BEST thing in the whole world. Meet Baron the park pony!

It is my opinion that all we need to save the world is more park ponies. If I ever run for office, this is the first thing I am implementing. More park ponies.

October 10 – Musee Rodin

Tuesday I set out to see the Rodin Museum. Unlike other museums I have mentioned, this one is not owned by the French state; it is a private museum devoted to Auguste Rodin (bet you didn’t see that coming.) I did not go out to Monet’s house at Giverny or to any other “great artist” mecca. The crowds scare me. And if I had been feeling better, I might have skipped this museum in favor of something more strenuous. But the way I was feeling, this suited me just fine.

As I made my way home, I realized I only had one more day and I was missing two of my must-sees. Sacre Coeur and the Pompidou. I contemplated which would be cut from my list.

October 11 – Sacre Coeur & Pompidou

Sometimes Facebook really comes through. A friend suggested taking an Uber up to the top of Sacre Coeur and then making my way down. So, I did. This allowed me time to visit both Sacre Coeur and Pompidou!

Uber ride skyline on the way to Sacre Coeur

As long as I was splurging, I decided to Uber up to the top to watch the sunrise.

Sacre Coeur had real gargoyles!

 

With the sun up, I made my way down the park. I enjoyed watching the grounds maintenance team.

 

Isn’t this a rather perfect abstract?

I took the Metro back to the hotel and had breakfast, dropping off the big camera and a few other items I wouldn’t need for the Pompidou.

The most “modern” of the museums I visited, I found a lot to contemplate in this museum. I took part in an interesting event called “Toutes les copies“. The museum had a robust collection of Henri Matisse, and I fell hard for his painting, “Interieur, bocal de poissons rouges (printempts 1914)“. There were also quite a few Mondrians which offered me a chance to look at these attractive paintings closely. The Pompidou also looks at trends in furniture and other pop art, which is a great reminder than there is really nothing off limit to artists.

Making my way back to the Metro, I passed the stunning Tour Saint-Jacques.

Tour Saint-Jacques

I’m glad I pushed myself to tour both of these landmarks. I think I would have been disappointed to miss either one. As it is now, I know there were things I didn’t see, but I’m content with what I was able to access.

October 12 – Home

Paris is a nice place to visit, but I was more than ready to come home. The total travel time, door to door, is more than eighteen hours, and I really felt it, particularly as my start in the Paris airport commenced with the wrong terminal and about an hour of frantic searching for information about my flight. Once found, the French line system was in full force. Acerbating the issue, the Iceland Air computer system had gone down and EVERY SINGLE PERSON had to check in manually. I made it through the line, only to be told I was standby for the flight to Portland.

In the end, after an anxious period in Reykjavik, I made it home pretty seamlessly. My friends had done a WONERFUL job taking care of the fur kids, and Key’s greeting upon seeing me hit the spot. That night, I tumbled into my own bed, curled up with the dog and cats, and was just happy to be HOME.

Paris! (Part 3)

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I thought I covered three days in my last post, but the next day I realized I only got to two. This coming back is hard work! There are numbers and things one must get right.

October 2 – L’Orangerie & Jardin des Tuileries

Monday, I had reservations at L’Orangerie. For those who don’t know, the arrangement of art museums to a historic timeline is approximately:

Inadvertently, I went through the museums in this order. L’Orangerie covers a period that is not my favorite period, as it showcases a lot of artists that really had a grim outlook on life (in my opinion). Dispite my vague distaste for Picasso, Modigiani, and Cezanne (on the grounds that I think all of them were demonstrably abusive to women), walking through the collection was simply amazing.

Upon leaving the museum, I decided to explore a big part adjacent to the museum. It was the Jardin des Tuileries, which connects to the Louvre. Essentially, it was a royal garden.

I was lucky enough to see beekeepers working the beehives. This is gonna be a painting!

After touring the museum, I ended up walking back to the hotel, hitting the Jardin du Luxembourg, Parthenon Pantheon, Church of Saint-Étienne-du-Mont and a few other highlights.

It was a good day, but quite a hike when all was said and done. I was glad to return to the hotel and get dinner! As I alluded to in my last post, I was also starting to feel the effects of a cold and the general jet lag. I was also having some difficulty with my blood sugar and stomach. I spent that evening plotting how to beat a cold and find some healthier food options for myself.

October 3 – Versailles

Taking French in high school, my teacher made the class promise that if we ever went to France we would visit Versailles. So, for me, not hitting this site was not an option, in spite of the various reports I had heard about overcrowding. I had purchased a museum pass which included Versailles and had booked an early entry time into the palace. The metro ride to the site was a pleasant 45 minutes or so, but upon stepping outside again, I discovered that southwestern Paris had decided to rain. Eastern Paris hadn’t breathed a word about this plan, so I hadn’t taken my coat. However, I am an Oregonian, so I trooped to the entry, ignore the dozens of umbrella vendors.

Once inside the courtyard, the French line system was in its full glory. I will spare you the details, but being out in the rain, crying, in the midst of a huge, uncaring crowd is NOT the experience I hoped to have. In the end, though I could have gone into the palace, I was so utterly miserable that I elected to just tour the gardens (for an additional fee). The rain had stopped, so I was able to sit down and figure out a game plan. I definitely had a cold. I gave myself permission to take care of myself, and in the end, I only spent a couple of hours at Versailles before returning to the hotel.

That evening I did laundry and simply got some bread and cheese for dinner.

October 4 – Cold

I barely left the hotel this day. I went to get a Covid test (negative) and some decongestant. But other than that, I stayed in my hotel room. I was so miserable that I actually called the airlines to find out the cost of getting a flight back home. It was… a lot.

October 5 – Bois de Boulogne

The next day I didn’t feel great, but I had basically decided to stick out the trip. So, I got a late start leaving the hotel and decided to go to the Bois de Boulogne, a large park on the western outskirts of Paris. I hoped to do some bird watching and sitting on benches. I took my big camera, and on exiting the Metro, learned the Longchamps and Auteuil racecourses used the same Metro stop. As I planned to go to the steeplechasing on Sunday, this was excellent information to have.

I wandered around the park well past lunch, trying to find the “lakes” that were mentioned as a hot spot for birds. Unfortunately, in the end, I did too much (on too little food) and ended up activating an “emergency plan” of calling an Uber to take me back to the hotel. It was a bit of a demoralizing day.

Also on this day, I had the most bizarre experience I would have in France. The park was full of various users, including lots of dog walkers. I was taking pictures of various dogs, thinking I might do a painting about how dogs were universal.

I had taken a photo of a particularly cute terrier when I caught a woman glaring at me. It was obvious that the terrier was her dog, so I said, “J’aime vous chein” (I like your dog). Anyway, I hope that’s what I said. She began to talk, obviously upset, using words like “interdit” (forbidden) and “police” (self explanatory). I sat there looking confused. She came over to me and began saying, in English, “It’s easy” and gesturing to my camera. I won’t swear to my translation, but she wanted me to delete the photos of her dog. I let her look at my camera while I did just that. She looked as though she wanted me to delete the photos of the other dogs, but instead just marched away grumbling the word “interdit” over and over. I sat there on the bench until she had left.

When I posted this little story on Facebook, a friend suggested that maybe she was worried about dog napping. Another friend looked up French laws and told me that the French actually do have pretty strict privacy laws around taking pictures of things without permission. Having just come from a variety of museums where people did nothing BUT take selfies with the paintings, this seemed pretty confusing to me.

October 6 – Antibiotics

Friday morning, I realized that “this” was not working. I no longer had a cold, I had a sinus infection. With close to a week to go, I couldn’t just ignore the situation until it went away (favorite coping mechanism). If I wanted to have the faintest chance of enjoying the rest of my trip, I needed to figure out a way to get antibiotics. This is another day that I will be light on the details. While it was a struggle, many people did help me. And one didn’t. No, the French are not rude. Certain people, however, are bitches. After acquiring my treasure, I spent the rest of the day napping in my hotel room or sunning myself on the hotel’s rooftop terrace.

October 7 – Bois de Vincennes

Antibiotics are a miracle. The next day I didn’t feel great, but I felt able to try an outing. Returning to the plan of staying outdoors and not infecting people, I decided to go to the Parc floral de Paris at the east side of the Bois de Vincennes. As it turned out, this was an excellent plan.

First, delightfully, I was able to see a great many birds.

The second bit of happiness was lunch, complete with a peacock.

 

Finally, I toured the permanent Bonsai display.

It was a lot, but I was able to do it by moving slowly and deliberately. I still returned to the hotel in midafternoon all tuckered out, but feeling like things were on an upswing.

Paris! (Part 2)

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Continued from Part 1.

September 30 – Musee D’Orsay

Saturday my big goal was the Musee D’Orsay. While I had expected the love the Louvre, the breadth of the Impressionists at the “MO” was pretty exciting too. But, after the Louvre the day before, my excitement was tempered with the expectation of an indifferent crowd.

The line here was one of the better lines, only three stages instead of five and I didn’t even try to get audio guides. I did my best to work away from the entrance and work my way back, figuring the biggest crowds would be around the entrance, food, and Impressionists. Indeed, the rooms devoted to the Impressionists were a mob scene. Everyone had to get a selfie with a Monet, Renoir, and Van Gogh. Look at a painting? Nope, just the selfie. Trying to step back and really look just felt impossible.

Away from the Impressionists, however, things were better. I enjoyed the robust sculpture collection, particularly “Ours blanc” by Francois Pompon and “Mediterranee dit aussi la pensee” by Aristide Maillot.

Even in the Impressionist wing, “Women at the Spring” (aka “The Danaids”) and “Le champ de ble d’or et de sarrasin” by Paul Serusier made me rethink yellow. Viewing “Danseuses montant un escalier” by Edgar Degas made me realize that all artists push color.

My favorite part, however, was Gallery 9 which was devoted to Orientalism.

Now, before I continue, please note that I understand that the Orientalism movement is fraught with imperialist and racist overtones. But I find the art, still in the Romantic period devoted to naturalism, very inspiring. Gustave Gillaumet’s work “L’Algerie” and “Le Sahara” take my breath away. I don’t remember Frank Brangwyn, but his piece “Un marche sur la plage” made me rethink color entirely. “Elephants d’Afrique” by Charles Emile de Tournemine  made every other elephant painting seem like a pale imitation. Paul Lazerges’s “Dromadaires a l’oued” was a masterwork in temperature.

Upon leaving MO, I decided to take the Batobus back to the hotel. This was an excellent decision due to great scenery and the chance to see Notre Dame relatively close.

October 1 – Braderie de Houilles

Sunday was probably my most unusual day. I decided to go out into the Paris suburbs to a large garage sale called Braderie de Houilles. I’m not sure what attracted me. I had a vague idea of picking up antique art supplies or discovering a fun piece of art. I wasn’t shocked, however, to find a town festival devoted to people trying to get rid of their junk to other people who probably didn’t need it either.

It was a fun trip, though not my most exciting adventure. But it felt good to know that French people’s stuff is just as junky as ours.

Upon returning to Paris, I decided to tour the Cluny. This Museum is famous for the Lady and the Unicorn tapesties, but it has a lot to offer in other beautiful things to look at.

I then walked back to the hotel, which was beautiful all by itself.

I adored the hotel I stayed in, but I will admit that the jet lag was pretty tough. I am not sure I understood that, and these first few days I really pushed myself. But by the end of Sunday, I was developing a sore throat. I hoped it was just allergies, but with the plane travel and all else, I was very afraid (and rightly so) that I was going to get a cold. I’m not a good patient, so the next post may be somewhat short on excitement!

Paris! (Part 1)

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I have returned from Paris, safe and sound (other than a lingering cold (NOT Covid)), full of thoughts and stories and photos and inspiration. Over the last couple of weeks, I have mentally written parts of this blog post over and over. I hope the story that unfolds lives up to my early drafts.

September 27 – Travel to Paris

With Covid and the general chaos of the last few years, it’s been a while since I’ve been in the jumble of the airport. Thousands of stories, but here are a few that I found interesting.

The first leg of the trip (technically, this “first leg” was the fourth (of six) with all the various legs to get to the airport and then hotel) was to Reykjavik (Iceland).

 

September 28 – Arrival in Paris, Hotel & Surrounds

After 18 hours of travel (door to door), I arrived at the Hotel du Jardin des Plants. I cannot praise this hotel enough; it was comfortable, safe, and EXQUISITELY placed.

View from my hotel room.

Across from the Jardin des Plants, it was just a couple blooks from a Metro stop. Also just blocks from the Sorbonne, the neighborhood was busy, but relatively quiet and residential. After checking in, I decided to go for a quick walk around the neighborhood before a nap.

That evening I went to a restaurant across the street, then strolled through the Jardin des Plants.

September 29 – Louvre

First thing first. On my first full day in Paris, I had booked myself into the Louvre. This was the thing I expected to enjoy the most and return to multiple times during the trip. I based this hope on my 2008 trip to England and my love of the National Gallery. There was one thing I hadn’t counted on: lines. The dysfunction of the French line system cannot be overstated. Over and over, process typically went like this:

  1. Line up. You don’t really know what the line is for, or if you are in the correct line, or if the line is even for what you want. But join the line.
  2. Go through the (long) line. Someone will ask for your ticket with the time of your booking. Go inside.
  3. But you are NOT inside yet. Join another line. This line may (or may not) be to enter the museum.
  4. Find out that this line was for the security check. Open your bag, go through metal detector, or whatever else. It would be easier just to make everyone get naked.
  5. Join another line. Lose will to live.
  6. You find out that this IS the line to enter the museum. But the ticket that you showed in step 2 is not the correct ticket. You now need to step aside and fight the internet to download the ACTUAL ticket.
  7. Reenter line and show REAL ticket.
  8. You are inside, right? Nope. You are just inside the museum. You need to find another line to get an audio guide.
  9. Regardless of whether you have booked and paid for the audio guide, somehow you did not do it right. Leave line to resolve the situation. Reenter audio guide line. Get audio guide.
  10. Surely now you can go see art, right? Nope. Enter line to go into the exhibits.

In all seriousness, the process to enter a museum typically took between 15 minutes to an hour. I took a selfie of myself at the Louvre (see below). As you will see, I look hot and sweaty (but happy). I was on step 4. By the time I was inside an exhibit, I had to sit down for thirty minutes to regain composure. My ticket for entry was at 9am and I did not even SEE art until after 10:30.

 

I cannot claim to see even a fraction of the art in the Louvre. I toured the early artifacts (Sully wing), the covered sculpture garden (Richelieu Wing), Winged Victory, and the Grande Galerie (Denon Wing, level 1). I didn’t stand in line to see the Mona Lisa. I didn’t see the Northern Europe, French, or Spanish paintings. I didn’t see a lot of what I hoped to see.

The one thing I did see enough of was “Winged Victory.” When I was taking French in high school, my teacher said this was her favorite piece, and I fell in love with it, too. I sat for about 20 minutes at her feet, soaking up her beauty. But it was hardly an intimate experience with all the people milling around and taking selfies.

In the end, the Louvre was the experience that most disappointed me about the trip. The lines, the heat, the crowding, the noise. It really felt more like being in a mall on Black Friday rather than a cathedral to art. There were sections that I was able to concentrate on the experience, but in general, I felt like I spent the day trying to regulate my body temperature and exasperation with other humans. Not an unfamiliar reaction, but one I hoped to have less of on vacation.

I’m going to end this post there. Three days of 15. But I have laundry and other chores to do before I can sit down again.

Big Days

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A few years ago, I had an opportunity to go out to dinner with my cousins, the children of my mom’s sister. As we were eating, the topic of visiting Grandma’s (and Grandpa’s) house came up. I learned that my aunt had spent nearly the entire car ride coaching my cousins about what not to tell Grandma. I was shocked, but recounted that my mom, too, spend an inordinate amount of time cautioning me! This led to the topic of Grandma and Grandpa visiting one of our houses. We were in gales of laughter, describing the frantic cleaning, cooking, and other preparation that took place, as well as the testiness of our respective parents as “the big day” approached.

As an adult, I feel like I’ve kept a good balance between cleaning sanity and fear of judgement. I don’t keep a “white glove ready” house (I have a dog and two cats) but my house is usually tidy. I mean, you can’t eat off the floors, but who really does that? I really gave myself permission to let people see a dirty house after reading this blog post by one of my favorite authors, Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, the Yarn Harlot: Just stuff that laundry behind the piano.

I am saying that.

But my actions this weekend have told a completely different story.

As you know, I am going to Paris in JUST A FEW DAYS!!!!! To say I am excited is an understatement. While I meant to clean the house for my friends/house sitters before leaving, in my anxiety about, well, everything, I have been scurrying around, cleaning surfaces and tidying up like there is no tomorrow. I did the majority of my packing a couple weeks ago (don’t laugh) but I’ve got the suitcase and bag out, checking and rechecking that I’ve got what I need. When I’m not doing that, I’ve been working my way through a list of chores:

  1. Mop
  2. Laundry
  3. Clean refrigerator
  4. Winterize and bring in yard stuff
  5. Clean up email in-box
  6. Write directions
  7. Tidy up studio area
    1. Putting away paper
    2. Confiscating pens
    3. Sharpening pencils
    4. Organizing paints
    5. Cleaning palettes
  8. Set up areas for people to work if they don’t want to use my desk
  9. Trim cat and dog nails
  10. Make sure cat and dog food is completely full
  11. Clean garage
  12. Put down seed in new lawn area
  13. Finish art project
    1. Video for latest art project
    2. Blog post
  14. Set out garbage

My friends won’t notice or car that I did any of this. I know that. But I want them to be comfortable while they are here, and the best way I know how is to make the house hotel-like in its cleanliness (at least in my imagination).

In other words, I’m no more sane than Mom was on this topic. Humbling.

Meet Horiya

While there has been a variety of little art things happening this weekend, the big one is that I have finished Horiya.

Finished may be a strong word. I plan to train honeysuckle over her, and until that happens, she may look a little bare. Also, the “back” side is not filled in, only h er front. She may evolve a little more as time goes on.

Too Much Blue?

One of my tasks for this weekend was to finalize my painting gear for the trip. I have a little palette that I have had good success with when doing a daily painting challenge. So, I scooped out the colors I don’t use, cleaned it up, and refilled it.

Here are the colors I’m going with, clockwise from top left:

  • Cobalt blue (1 pan)
  • Ultramarine blue (1 pan)
  • Burnt umber (1 pan)
  • Yellow ochre (1 pan)
  • Cadmium yellow (1 pan)
  • White (1 pan)
  • Aurorean yellow (one pan)
  • Naples yellow (one pan)
  • Opera (one pan)
  • Alizarin crimson (one pan)
  • Ultramarine blue (2 more pans)

With my travel notebooks, a couple pens, a couple pens, and travel brushes, I think I’ll be able to sketch anything that strikes my fancy.

Of course, I’ve packed other things. Clothes (boring). A travel adapter. A paperback book (real paper!) My big camera. A few other things. But I’m determined to go with one carry-on and one small bag. Determined! I’ve researched the phone system and plan to take my own phone, but swap its sim card once I’m there. So, I’m hoping to post social media pics.

Next step, PDX carpet selfie!

Look away from the bright light…

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Hello all. I apologize for the radio silence. I got a little discouraged with the low response to my last post, which made it easier to just procrastinate. The good news is that I have a few things to report.

Leif

First, Leif, lord of the flickers, is installed!

I LOVE HIM!

It’s also interesting to watch people discover (or not discover) him.

Horiya

And along this same vein, I started another project: My horse, Horiya. Horiya means “woman of the gardens”. I always wanted a horse!

Horiya is still not finished. First, I have to add some “bulk” so she more easily reads as a horse. Second, I will have to wait a few years for the honeysuckle plant to work up her legs and across her body. Look at her back legs to see the (tiny) plant. The goal is to have Horiya in a little pasture of clover and pollinators with a path to the Little Free Library alongside.

While neither of these are paintings, they were definitely fun and therefore I am calling them art. I intend to enter Leif in the next online show of ISEA. And maybe Horiya when she is more finished next year.

Paris is 10 Days Away!

I’ve been having trouble getting started on painting because all my attention has been focused on elements of preparing for my 10-DAYS-AWAY trip to Paris. I mean, obviously, the yard and house must be spotless. All projects (ever) finished. And I couldn’t possibly start a new series with this big break happening.

That’s my story, anyway.

I am so excited about this trip. I actually packed two weeks ago because I was driving myself crazy trying to decide if I needed a new suitcase or if everything would fit into my current bag. I’m sure you will be as relieved as I was that it all fit.

There has been a small amount of last-minute drama about the pet sitting situation. Two friends were going to sit the house, dog, and cats; friend A the first week, Friend B the second. Friend B called me last week and explained she was having a family thing and said she could not take the last four days of the trip. So, I’ve been scrambling to find a solution. So far, I have three, but I’m still looking for the perfect one to come along. Anyone want a few days at the coast with a short black dog and pair of stand-offish cats?

When I went to England in 2008, I had each day of the trip packed with events or travel. I arrived in London, where I hit the Changing of the Horse Guards, British Museum, and National Gallery. From there I went to Strafford-upon-Avon and Warwick Castle. Then to Birmingham and two days of Crufts. Then to Cheltnam and two days of horse racing. Finally, back to London where I only had time for Kew garden before returning home. It was a great trip, but I’d like a chance to linger if necessary.

For this trip, I am staying the entire two weeks in Paris. I am not adverse to an overnight trip, but I haven’t scheduled one yet. Here is the itinerary.

  • Day 1 – Travel
  • Day 2 – Travel, arrive, wait to check in at park across street from hotel, the Jardin des Plants
  • Day 3 – Louvre
  • Day 4 – Musee d’Orsay
  • Day 5 – Braderie de Houilles 
  • Day 6 – Musee de l’Orangerie
  • Day 7 – Versailles
  • Day 9 – Louvre (again)
  • Day 9 – open
  • Day 10 – Auteuil Racecourse
  • Day 11 – Montmarte & Sacre Coeur (if not previously done)
  • Day 12 – train to nearby bird watching
  • Day 13 – errands and re-see
  • Day 14 – Travel, return home

Missing from this itinerary are the following items, which I would also like to work in:

  • Musee De Cluny
  • Musee du Quai Branly
  • Musee Eugene Delacroix
  • Musee Picasso-Paris
  • Musee Rodin
  • Eiffel Tower (just to see)
  • Notre-Dame Cathedral (will not be open, but I’d like to see anyway)
  • Arc de Triomphe (just to see)
  • Boulevard du Montparnasse / Montparnasse Tower
  • Champ de Mars
  • Trocadero
  • Place de la Concorde
  • Tuileries Garden
  • Palais-Royal
  • Ile de la Cité
  • The Pantheon
  • Sainte Chapelle
  • Père Lachaise
  • Les Marais
  • Centre Pompidou

I have purchased two six-day Paris Museum Passes and I intend to use them!

To survive the next few days without looking like this:

I am going to try to not think about it.

Expect to see me running around the block!

It’s all art supplies

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The grumbling began when I began the decennial pruning of my mom’s rhodies.

Dad and some small person. Taken at the Beach House in 1976 by Mom.

Mom loved rhodies, particularly the big red-flowering ones that bloom spectacularly each May.

I like rhodies, too. They are a fine plant. But let’s face it, they are not without maintenance requirements. Mom never liked to prune back a plant, so they were overgrown when she died in 2018. In the intervening five years, they have grown leggier. They are also in desperate need of fertilizing and some pest management. This year my big job was to prune and fertilize the MANY rhododendrons around the yard (16, but a couple might have slipped by me).

One side of the yard. Mom REALLY liked rhodies.

We get yard debris pickup only every two weeks and my pruning soon outpaced the pickup. I began chopping the leaves of the rhodies into the bin, and piling the bare branches up nearby, thinking I could get those out in the winter. Then I got to thinking about how nice they looked all stacked up. I began an edging fence.

But the sticks remained.

One day, a spotted towhee landed in the pile, and it got me thinking. A few years ago, this cedar died. I asked the company to leave it up as a snag, hoping a bird family might nest in it someday. To be honest, I overestimated the appeal of this snag.

Alright, it’s just ugly. So far, no bird families have taken me up on my offer of housing. But flickers often perch on the top and survey their territory. Wouldn’t a sculpture of a big flicker be funny?

I’m not sure I’m done, but I’m not sure I’m not. Also, I haven’t figured out the logistics of mounting “King of the Flickers” on the tree. Originally, I thought the biggest branch in what is now the center would be used to mount him, but that doesn’t appear to be working out.

We get pretty big winds here, and there are power lines very near the tree, so continuing to hang KOF isn’t the most practical option.

But going back to grumbling. I feel like the neighbors are starting to worry about my sanity. First, I defoliated the rhodies to bare sticks. Now I’m standing in my front yard with sticks, wire, and a mini chain saw.

Promise me that if the authorities come and take me away, you’ll campaign for art supplies. Obviously, I’m not too picky.

Pithy Post

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Howdy, folks. Well, I had a nice, productive weekend. Yard work, house maintenance, food prep, laundry. I managed to sneak in some painting time, but the results are not new; instead I worked on finishing three paintings from the coastal plein air.

And with that update, my friends, I’m signing off for the weekend. I need a couple more hours of downtime before heading back into the real world.

Painting. Survival. Painting.

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Hello, friends. Apologies for the radio silence. It’s been hectic. As I posted two weeks ago, the last couple of weeks have been focused on the 2nd Annual Coastal Plein Air and surviving. More about surviving later.

Last weekend, Sandra Pearce came down and we cruised the coast, painting for three days to capture images for the show. (Note: If you are not following Sandra’s fine art page on Facebook, you should look it up!) Friday, we did some warm-up painting in the Depoe Bay area. Depoe Bay is to the north of the allowed painting zone, so I think both of us were just practicing and “getting our eye in”. I tested the kit I am planning to take to Paris to see if it would be sufficient.

Saturday morning, we drove to Seal Rock and then further south to Waldport.

Sandra says I have a “tourist information” sign around my neck, because people are always stopping and asking me questions or otherwise engaging. I kind of like it, but it can wear a little thin. Sunday, in particular, I had my fill of “ugly American” tourists. (Question: Why do people with really loud cars always leave their car running when using the bathroom?) Sunday, we brought Key along (he had been inside all day Saturday.) However, there was an incident with an off-leash dog that really got me steamed. We started the day at Ona Beach (where we painted last year) and finished at Yaquina Head.

I can’t speak for Sandra, but I can tell I was getting tired. While “Kingfisher” and “Painter” deserve to be finished, “Island” is just an oversized doodle. I am pleased with “Fireweed.” Excitingly, juror Aimee Erickson agreed and gave it an “Honorable Mention” at the show. Sadly, though Sandra’s works were fabulous, none of her words received any prizes (though a red dot award is ALWAYS the best award and I hope she gets one), but as she was best in show last year… well, I still think her stuff should have received something.

It must be my week for painting excitement. On Thursday I received an email that my painting “Graceful Grazers” (liquid charcoal and watercolor on paper) was accepted into the NWWS 83rd Annual International Exhibit by juror Stan Kurth (thank you!) This is my first national show acceptance with NWWS, and with two member shows in my past, I can apply for signature status! The exhibit runs Oct. 14-Nov 12 at the Matzke Fine Art Gallery in Camano Island, WA. The in-person reception will be Saturday, October 28 from 2:30-5pm. So close to my return from Paris, I will probably not be able to attend. But I’m thinking about it!

“Graceful Grazers”

Now you are caught up on my painting life. I will be focusing on trying to finish the paintings I started. And getting ready for Paris. (7.5 weeks to go!)

Everything Else

As I have mentioned in previous posts, my work life continues to be on the bleak side. A combination of too much work, big personalities, and lack of support. I end my days worn out, and just glad that my commute back home is short (ha ha.)

Unfortunately, while the commute is short, home is not quite as restful as I like. I have a new neighbor and he has complained about Key’s barking. Now, I’ll be the first person to admit this is fair. Key has a loud bark. As a small dog, his bark is particularly startling. His motto is, “Bark first, ask questions later.” To top it off, Key has separation anxiety. COVID has done nothing to convince him that I should be able to leave the house without him. I was disappointed to learn that (apparently) Key is expressing his opinions for HOURS when I leave. I had been assuming that he barked for a few minutes, then settled down. But my new neighbor assures me this is not so.

As the saying goes, you can pick your friends, but you can’t pick your neighbors. To keep the peace, I hired a young gal a few doors down to come by and let Key out of his kennel (inside the house, windows closed, fan on, radio on) on the days I have to go in to work. This worked for a few weeks, then she didn’t show up (or at least she didn’t take the money I had left for her). I was able to stay home the next week, but I haven’t found a long-term solution. In the late fall and winter, I can take him to work and keep him in the car, taking him for walks every so often. But not during the summer.

With all this going on, Friday, as I was painting with Sandra, another neighbor called. Her story was that Key had been barking for a year and she was tired of it. Sandra and I came home, but Key was fine. Sandra, who overheard the conversation, said she thought the neighbor was talking about his outdoor barking, like the other neighbor, not about any barking he might have been doing right that moment. But the call upset me. I really don’t know what else to do. Later conversations did reveal that things had been better recently and that her call on Friday was a bad timing issue, though the situation is still precarious.

Into this comes the kittens, Chitza and Anouk. For a few weeks/months now, we have been having some “litterbox issues.” Occasionally, someone would decide to pee in an empty cardboard box instead of playing in it. Or I would fine urine in the empty clothes hamper. The most usual issue was a suspicious wet spot on the area rugs in front of the outside doors. I had been keeping an eye on the situation, but it was infrequent and often had a behavioral explanation. For instance, a friend had stayed over. Or I was late getting home. Or some other infraction.

But Thursday morning I saw Chitza in the litter box for a LONG time, and when I went to clean the box, she had made only the tiniest of pools. A few minutes later, she squatted in front of the cat tree and made a bigger puddle. I’ve been through this before. I also know that one of the kittens’ brothers has crystals in his urine. So, I called the vest.

The next day, Sandra arrived and both kittens (now three years old) went into hiding, expressing their opinions about the situation whenever they could get me alone. Monday morning, I captured Chitza and took her to the vet. It was a drop-off appointment and she ended up being gone around six hours. Just as I suspected, she has Feline Idiopathic Cystitis (FIC). Sigh. BIG sigh. New food, new routine, new other stuff is on the horizon.

After bringing Chitza home, I figured this particular trauma chapter was over. Not so. Anouk became convinced that Chitza was a COMPLETE STRANGER CAT! Yes, I know she is reacting to smell, etc. But seriously. They’ve been together for three years every day. So, for the last four days everything has been separate. Separate food, loves, play. It’s like having two cats! I’m delighted to report that Anouk didn’t hiss at Chitza during the unpacking of the groceries last night.

Anouk (left, inside the grocery bag) and Chitza (right, looking cautious)

Can world peace be far behind?