No cheese on the pizza?

This was one yummy pizza. Dough made in the food processor, pesto made with basil, olive oil and walnuts, thinly sliced potatoes and onions.

I'm so much better without dairy products. 

Thanks K. for the idea!

Was I sleeping?

Well, yes. It is the height of Oregon darkness and my mind and body are somnolent or coma-like depending on the moment. I tried to download my photos, but first I couldn't find batteries and now I can't find the cord. I hope I haven't lost all my readers. I hope to wake up soon.

Drawing

Ging took this photo. It makes me happy. I love to draw, especially people.

Happy Monday!

Retirement can be exciting!

Life is never boring when you are hanging out with Ginger...

When you least expect it....

2 days ago while rushing to get out the door to work I missed the bottom step and landed in a heap on the living room floor. It's shocking how quickly this happened. My mind was elsewhere, my feet not connected to my brain. I limped to work (my poor knee) and dripped blood all over my nice neat work clothes. This is the good part. My finger didn't get sewed back together, they super-glued it!

My finger has stopped throbbing, and my knee will heal.

And poor Ginger has to do all the dishes for about a week!

Improving

I don't think I have ever written about my struggles and attempts to eat in a healthy manner. At age 57 I have  had to make a choice: feel miserable or learn to eat the way I should have been eating all my life.

I can't tell you how hard this is for a person who basically loves sugar and bad fat and eats most of these items between the hours of 5pm and bedtime.

They say it takes a long time to change habits.

This must be what it feels like to quit smoking?

I've been working on it for the last 5 months.

I'm actually pretty proud of myself. I'm cooking and eating more veggies than I thought possible. And I like kale!?! I've discovered that most veggies taste much better to me in a raw state. I'm into my green smoothies every am and I (mostly, I have had a few slips) don't eat after 6pm.

I just made a batch of what a friend calls "dirt food" cookies. They are mostly oats, banana, and almond meal with vegan carob chips and taste quite good.

I could never have learned these things without the enthusiasm and support of Ms. K. Thank you a zillion. You are a very good example and teacher.

Kinda fuzzy and ready to paint on...

The print from the plate I made yesterday. 

I like to paint on these with acrylic ink. I'm eager to know what that big black shape will become...

More soon, I'm trying to get a winter studio schedule going. Hard because at 5:30 I just want to go to sleep, and if I give in then I'm up all night. I subscribed to computer tutorials and hope this will be a worthwhile endeavor along with doing a little art each night.

Maya Inspires Me!

 Yesterday I got to hang out in the studio with one of my favorite artists. Ms. M. is one of the most creative people I have ever met. We made collographs (a printmaking process where you make a collage, ink it, and run it through the press). Maya's first print (above) was a stunner.

 Aggie watching Maya ink up the plate....

I made this plate today and will ink it and post results tomorrow. Thanks Maya for helping me get myself going again in the studio... My little Conrad press works great.

More vacation fun!

Simon is obviously having fun...

One of my sister's favorite pastimes. (She raked leaves in the rain too!)

Hope everyone is having as good a time as we are.

Having fun with my sister...

We collaged a project,

Raked leaves,

Had tea and cupcakes,

Saw a movie: "Secretariat",

Cooked dinner,

visited friends,

walked dogs,

and just had a great time.

My sister is here!

My sister is here visiting!

Ging and Sonny walked all over during the first Friday Art Walk while I participated in a fundraiser. 

About 25 artists, that's me above, drew from a variety of models. All the drawings were put up on the walls and were for sale. It was very fun.

Participant- nice drawing...

A really great idea benefiting the Oregon Arts Alliance.

We had a lot of fun this Halloween...

Our greeter was in place waiting for darkness.

The candy bowl was full of gummy brains, eyeballs and teeth. (It's good to get candy I don't want to eat!)

Pluto borrowed Simon's hat.

Stringing lights...

The bride of Dracula watched over the delicious boiled shrimp Ginger made.

Frank and Vlad met near the dip for an intimate moment.

Some people ate the cupcake and left the eyeball behind, go figure!
Thanks to Barbara, Aggie, Toby, Dave, Mary Jo, Argus, Diane, Kate and Amy for coming to our party. And we even had a few trick or treaters! And thanks to my sweetheart for spending hours getting it all ready. It was SUPERB!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!
It is a little known fact that Halloween is the Lesbian New Year.
This is my favorite holiday.
Cheers to my sister,
I remember your mummy costume very well!

The Mail Carrier's Family

I gasped when I found this bunch. The mail carrier is about 6 inches tall and all are made of strange, stiff rubber. Sigh... now if I only had time to paint them.
I have to "weed" the studio, it is closing in on me. Need to get rid of a bunch of stuff, but not this group... Don't you love the mom's shape?
Hi to D. love you brother.

The Seasons Change, Olive Goes Underground...

There are many things I love to do, but just for 10 or 15 minutes. If these activities last for say an hour, they are no longer pleasurable.
For example: raking leaves, doing dishes, weeding or folding laundry.
For the last week or so I've been raking up piles of leaves from the oak trees. No need to be precise about it as there are a zillion more in the trees. I like this!

I didn't mean to paint such a strange picture, it just happened and now there is nothing to be done to make it sweet. Olive is in a hornet's nest? Or having a bad day at school? The little piece of paper on the hem of her dress says: "graded readings". What does it all mean? I do not know. Sometimes I feel like a painting is "honest", even though I may not like it. I think this is an "honest" painting.

Weekend Part Two...

Just a couple more photos of the "bad" art. I was just wondering what was on their heads...

And the piece below... well I wanted to buy it. It was some kind of very odd collage method.

So, readers you are probably glad I'm moving on to the Mount Hood/Timberline Lodge part of our trip. Our two nights at Timberline Lodge were wonderful. We sat outside in the sun at the base of the mountain. Ginger rode the ski lift up to the rectangular patch of snow. (I was too chicken, fear of heights!). The views in all directions were overwhelming.

This was the view out the window from our room. We could see Mount Jefferson and the Sisters in the distance, and layers of soft blue-grey mountains. Sigh...


There were 4 C.S. Price paintings among all the amazing art treasures. I love the paintings from this era. They are dark and broody and very emotional. The building itself is like a giant puzzle, all put together by hand. Everywhere you look you see craft. It was very moving to me because it was made during a time when so many people had such hard lives, and artists could not make a living (like now...) and people obviously took such pride in their work.

So many of the materials used at Timberline Lodge were recycled. These andirons are made from railroad ties.

We read and relaxed and marveled at the work of the WPA in the thirties.

A long post... yawn... to work in the am.
love, Janice

Our Super Weekend- Part One

We had the best 4 day trip last weekend... Drove to Silverton and then through the Hood River Valley, through the Columbia Gorge to the great town of Hood River. We stopped at every single farm stand and collected lots of squash and pumpkins. I asked the young boy working at this place how much the big pumpkin weighed. He said very seriously "lady that one isn't for sale". Since it weighed over 1000 pounds it would have crushed the roof of the Prius anyway.

The birthday/almost retired gal and me at the Gorge.

We loved the Hood River Hotel. And the resturant there was really good!

This was my favorite store in Hood River: Artifacts: Good Books and Bad Art.
The bad art was supreme. People leave it on the doorstep. And it's all for sale. I laughed and laughed and couldn't even look at books. Since I've been know to make a few bad art pieces of my own, well, what can I say... it just made me happy.
Here is Ginger with the owner and a new arrival awaiting hanging on the wall.

Full day...

Today was Ginger's retirement party at the hospital. I was so proud of her. So many friends came, and the cake was YUMMY! People asked if I was jealous... I'm not, she deserves this after 40 plus years of nursing.

and the days get shorter...

If you live in the Pacific Northwest your fall mornings may start in front of a light box. It's kind of a nice way to get things done... like paperwork and looking through magazines and paying your bills. If I don't sit in front of the artificial light I will be asleep and immobile by December. Such is the saga of a sun-deprived former Southern Californian.

I didn't get a whole lot done at the coast art wise. I started trying to make some of my coaster images "big" (The little coaster is off to the left). I like what is happening, but this is not the way I usually work. Hmmnnn... more to follow.

I did make muffins at the coast. Ms. K. you'd be proud to know they have kale pulp from my green smoothie in them. You were right it's like zucchini bread! Tasted pretty good...
ok, back to work tomorrow.
love to all, Janice

Where have I been?

Sorry for no posts in such a long time. My life has been way too busy, at work and at home. No art making in almost a month. Not so good for a girl like me...
I'm off to the coast for a few days. I have a bucket full of paint, pencils, little bits of paper, glue stick and some big pieces of paper. I have nothing in mind except messing around and enjoying myself. It's supposed to rain, so it'll be a good weekend of books, art, and videos.
Better postings from me soon and sending energy and love to R.
love, Janice

Do you know these people?

I got this foursome at an estate sale today. I'm curious about them and am wondering what decade they are from. Let me know if you've seen clothespins like these.
I have to complain a little about my studio. It's a giant mess. Paper everywhere and I can't seem to clean it up. I'm not usually like this...
Does paper rule anyone else's life? Arrgh!!!

The MECCA Exhibit

My little attempt at 3-D got kinda lost at the MECCA exhibit. The entries were wild, and big, and lots of fun.

Cool spider made from umbrella ribs.
Hope your week is going well.

Monty is not a yellow dog...

Here are some paintings I have been working on... these three are 8"x8". I've been working with a base of absorbent ground and really liking using graphite along with acrylic ink and paint.

The figures are from the Harmony drawing program. I like her strangely shaped glove.

But... she is my favorite. This is the most accurate description I can render of how I felt at age 15...

And another funny painting of my angel dog...

And me at the mayor's art show next to my paintings. I feel really happy to have my work up. Last eve Linda G. and I had a great time touring all the first Friday exhibits. More soon.