Coffee And Paint Drips Blog - Page 61 of 79

The Birthday Boy

Taking time out of my busy “art career” to celebrate the birth of Son #2 today. Twenty three years ago today I had an appointment with the doctor who would deliver our second son by Ceasarian section. Son #1 was an emergency section so they didn’t want to chance it with the next one.
He weighed in at 8lbs plus, I can’t remember how much extra, and was a wiry, busy, moving baby. Every time the nurses brought him to my room he’d be all out of the swaddling they had wrapped him in, squirming and moving those arms and legs. And hungry! He was downing those little bottles of formula and looking for more.

As he was as an infant, so he was as a baby, then a toddler, and a child. Always on the go. Smart as a whip. He was always doing something, and quick. We couldn’t take our eyes off him for a minute because if you did he’d be gone and into something in a flash. Poor quiet, calm Son#1 used to say to me “Mom, he’s embarrassing me!” This kid was very distractable and took long to talk. He had his own language and none of us could understand him, maybe only me. He was a visual learner and look out if he saw you do something, he could copy it in a second. We had him out of the crib and in a bed by the time he was a year and a half because he kept jumping out! He’d run around the house at 5A.M. and Son #1 would run in our bedroom to wake us and catch him!

Son #2 needed to go to nursery school so I could get a break. Every day I would pray the school wouldn’t call me to come and get him! But he loved it, even though he was wild, kind of. We found out he had language learning problems and by kindergarten he was labeled learning disabled due to auditory processing disorder. His brain took long to process language and for him it was frustrating trying to be understood, and to understand anyone else. He would come home from school on the bus, and by the time the bus moved to the next stop he’d be crying his eyes out mumbling about how mean the teacher was, and she definitely was a witch. Well he didn’t last long there and was moved to a special education class with really disabled children. That was a difficult experience for us and sad for me. But the principle assured us that kids did really well once the pressure was off. And they were right.

He excelled in high school, got accepted to college and graduated this May with a Bachelor’s degree in Health and Public Management. His graduation was on a Friday and he began working in his field on Monday.

We’re so proud of him and how well he’s done so far in his young life. He’s fun and outgoing, tall and handsome, with quick wit and a huge smile. In the Greek culture we have a saying, “May you reach 100.”

Happy birthday Son #2!

What’s the Rush?

Painting in progress

I must slow down my progress on this garden painting. I’m trying to figure out why I’m in such a rush while painting. Where’s the fire, huh? I don’t take into account that I’m working with a medium that needs to dry somewhat before I keep throwing more paint in an area. What’s that word? Impatient? I feel like I want to see results while I’m painting, but with these watercolors I’m learning I need to wait just a bit or there’s going to be mud, not color and form. While I was working on this I had to stop myself from continuing.

Is it that I’m working from life that gives me a sense of urgency? The idea that I’m present and ready, let’s get it down before I lose the feeling? I don’t get that sense when I work from my photos. No, with photos I get too detail-y. Maybe it’s the idea in my head that time and light is fleeting?

When I paint from life I forget where I am and it’s a good feeling. But I push it and keep painting like a mindless robot, just adding color, shadow, lines, water, with out of body movements. As I wake from my painting stupor, I look at the work I did and think, “Ok, you did it again and messed it up! Idiot.” Some how I don’t tear up the work and I just leave it tossed aside discarded like the trash, but not in the trash. Later on while passing by on my way to another room I see it and think “Oh that’s how it looks now? How come it’s not as bad as I thought?” Things seem to work.

Funny thing is I always forget that it’s the process not the outcome. Why is that? I wish I could figure out how my brain works. How long does it take to grow up?

A Day on the North Shore of Long Island

The weather here in New York is hot, hot, hot! It’s only June. I’m not complaining about the heat, no way. I’ll take it hot any day. You know what kind of winter we get here? It’s not fun, for me anyway. I can’t seem to get myself warm enough in the winter. When the summer rolls around and everyone is dragging and complaining about the heat, I’m all smiles. Yes to summer weather, every time.

So I won’t be painting in the heat of mid-day. I’ve been waiting until the sun starts going down in the afternoon. I wish I could get myself out there in the early morning, but there’s too much to do in the morning around here. I like how the light looks very early in the day. Anyway, forget it. I have to get my things done early, get out and be back by lunch time. Then the rest of the day is mine.

The Mr. was home on Sunday, rather than fishing out east. He suggested visiting a custom car show that a friend mentioned, nearby in Glen Cove . That’s the other mania: cars. Drag racing is in the blood. The Mr. and the Sons watch it on TV, talk about it, go to sanctioned events, and had/have cars they’re developing. Car people just want to look at and talk about cars, a very benign bunch. All cars, all the time. Ok, so I don’t mind it either. Unless my guys want to spend money on car parts, then I get crabby.

The car show was at a lovely shore-side park called Morgan Park, on the north shore of Long Island, so the setting was lovely. A band was playing, food and cold drinks were available, some vendors selling car stuff, and cars. Parked all over the private park were all kinds of cars as far as the eye could see. Old cars and new cars of every model, shape, size you could think of. Over the sea of shiny waxed, colorful cars and chrome, was the blue of Long Island Sound. Boats bobbed in the calm water. The sky was clear with puffy clouds and the water sparkled. Great! I love being near water so I could ignore the cars. (Except for the 1963 Buick Riviera I saw, one of my pop’s favorites. Hi Pop!)

The park was very pretty and had walking paths along the shore with this lovely, stone pergola at the end where people were fishing. Another park and museum near this one is Garvie’s Point which houses Native American artifacts and such. The area is a great place to draw or paint. Seeing the signs on the road pointing to Garvie’s Point I thought I’m going to have to visit alone one day this summer and make it an Artist’s Date.

Good idea.

Photos for Friday

Thought for Thursday

“I don’t believe in total freedom for the artist. Left on his own, free to do anything he likes, the artist ends up doing nothing at all. If there’s one thing that’s dangerous for an artist, it’s precisely this question of total freedom, waiting for inspiration and all the rest of it.” ~Federico Fellini, Italian movie director (1920 – 1993)

Tuesday No-Show at the Easel

Daylilies and Hydrangea in the garden at 7AM this morning

Sorry I was a no-show yesterday. I had one of those days that would not stop for anything. My morning started at the farmer’s market. I was disappointed with the produce as the veggie guy didn’t have much with him. Maybe he was having a bad growing week. Then the fruit guy was out of fruit, so I visited the cheese guy and bought cheese. Okay. Cheese is not fruit, but I decided to splurge. I love cheese.

When I returned home I had phone calls to make that I have been putting off. House stuff, laundry (people need clean clothes you know), oh and a library stop to pick up books I ordered. Tried to cross things off the to-do list and not making much of a dent.

After lunch I was meeting a good friend for Starbucks coffee and to dish the dirt! We don’t get too many chances to get together often so it was a real treat. That took up three, nice long hours, but worth every minute! She’s an art lover and is encouraging me to set up some sort of gallery show somewhere. I’d like to do that, but I’m afraid I may not have enough work. I have to think about it.

Later I had to plan our dinner, prepare the dinner, serve the dinner, clean up after dinner and finally sit down in front of the TV to just veg.

Painting? Nope. Thinking about painting? Yup. Planning the next painting already even though the current one isn’t finished at all? Uh huh! What’s interesting is that I’m not in resistance mode, just moving along.

I’ll try again today.

Thinking of Painting and Don’t Ask About Dinner

Back to Monday, my favorite day of the week. I apologize to those of you who hate Mondays, but I need Mondays like you need that first taste of coffee in the morning. It’s like that. Okay, I won’t bore you with the “gory” details of Monday morning, I know I’ve been there before and dragged you along. Yeah, I know, you know, we all know! Like Jerry Seinfeld used to say, “Yadda yadda.” But I like to say BlahBlahBlah.

So, anyway, a nice quiet weekend at home was spent. My family came for dinner, we ate, we laughed, we talked. Was just lovely. Calm and quiet morning, the Mr. took a ride on his bicycle, Son #2 in LaLaLand sleeping the morning away, and I had coffee and the Morning Pages on my lounge chair in the garden.

The Mr. raises birds. Canaries, finches, other kinds I can’t remember, and hangs them outside our patio room and in the tree where they chirp and sing. For a while it’s nice to hear the birds in the morning. It feels like a far away forest escape until a few hours go by and the chirping/tweeting doesn’t stop from the five or six birds hanging out there and my head feels like it’s going to explode if those darn birds don’t shut up already! Ugh.

Ahem. Sorry I almost lost it there. Anyway.. After a long while they do calm down and so do I. You know, chirping birds can get just as annoying as kids who don’t just play and talk but scream and run around in circles. Cute and nice at first, bloody murder afterward.

No, I didn’t paint this weekend. That’s why I like Monday. Monday I get back to work too, except I’m already at the job site and everyone else leaves. On the weekend too many people are around. I don’t mind people looking over my shoulder as I work. On the contrary, it’s nice and social. But the family has demands. They need things only I can do. Yes, only me. And if I’m painting, it seems to them I’m not really doing anything. So they talk to me, ask me questions about other things, like what’s for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and where’s their socks. Yes, a lovely conversation. Uh, nope.

Back in the garden. When my son and now daughter-in-law were planning their wedding, she wanted white hydrangea for her bridal bouquet. I started looking at this flower differently after that. I never really liked the bloom heads, all droopy and huge. After the wedding I found these white hydrangea on sale, barely alive, and practically dried up at the local Home Depot. I was compelled to rescue it. Now two years later they are growing and blooming beautifully. It’s called Blushing Bride and bloom all summer long. Lucky me!

When I look at these flowers I think of my gorgeous daughter-in-law and it makes me so happy. All weekend I spied this hydrangea thinking of how to paint it. That’s how I spent my time in the garden with no one around. Observing, thinking, planning, daydreaming, making mental notes. It’s a lot of work, but looks like I’m idle and inactive. With iced coffee in hand, lounging in the chair in the midst of the blooms I’m painting, but no one is the wiser.

Friday Photos

Newest folly in the garden taken in the bad light of my patio room.

Enjoy the weekend and Happy Father’s Day!

Thought for Thursday

“Never try to teach a pig to sing. You waste your time, and you annoy the pig.” ~Mark Twain

Back in the Garden

After returning home yesterday from the farmer’s market, and other related errands, the rest of my day was free. I had a leisurely lunch in the patio room, read the mail, made a couple of phone calls while looking at the colorful blooms in the garden. Since I was free of chores I took the watercolors into the garden to paint and it felt really good. Different flowers and bushes are in bloom, the afternoon sun was touching petals and leaves just right, it was very inviting.

A few years ago, while talking with my next door neighbor, I noticed this amazing blooming bush and asked her what it was. She was an avid gardener and had many different flowers and such in her garden. The bush we were looking at was close to three feet tall and covered in periwinkle blue dainty blooms and dazzled in the early morning June sunlight. My neighbor said it was a lace-cap hydrangea and I’d never seen anything so breathtaking. I had to have one!

I visited a large garden store near me and there they were! Happy day! I bought one and planted it in a dappled sun spot where I could see it every day. It blooms in June for a few weeks so I have to enjoy it while I can right now. At night the blue flowers sparkle and when we eat dinner in the patio room I always say “Isn’t that bush amazing?”

So how can I replicate that color in paint? If I’m going to paint this I have to brush up on my color mixing. Or fake it.