Every Day in May—EDM #112 something fresh

I love avocados and in California they grow in abundance. Growing up they were always a part of meals—salads, sandwiches and guacamole. Our favorite way to eat them was when my grandmother would cut avocados in half, leave the skin on, cut out the pit and fill the hole with her homemade vinegrette. It was like a bowl of avocado deliciousness eaten with a spoon.

Every Day in May—EDM #111 a bowl

Quick sketch of small bowl of stawberries for EDM #111. It had forgotten how hard it is to keep up with the Every Day in May challenge. Only 20 more to go...

Every Day in May—EDM #110 something with a flame

I love rocks! The beaches here in Maine are filled with amazing rocks and I usually end up with bulging pockets after a long walk. The cliffs along the coast here are shades of gray which these wonderful granite votives were made. Up north or "Downeast" Maine the granite is a wonderful shade of pink—spectacular. Maine is so beautiful and a wonderful place to live...especially if you like a good long winter...

Every Day in May—EDM #108 light bulb & EDM # 109 a clock around the house

Busy day tomorrow with travel to my consulting job in Maryland, so I had to get a day ahead. Keeping up with this challenge can be a little overwhelming.

EDM #109 a clock around the house

I actually did this sketch on the last day of my California visit. Sitting in the kitchen, while my mother fixed dinner, I sketched and painted this clock that hangs in my parent's rustic California ranch house between the open kitchen and living room. It's been there forever.

This old clock, that needs to be wound with a key, was a major part of our lives as we checked it all day long. Like making sure it was true when we were told "it is way past your bedtime", or when we had to dash to catch the bus and when our favorite TV shows were on. It's most important function now is to let everyone know when Jeopardy is on and the 10 to 15 minute window to get the glass of wine ready.

What fine wine does my father drink while watching Jeopardy?

What is Two Buck Chuck!

EDM #108— a light bulb

Some of these challenges are hard to make interesting.

Every Day in May—EDM #107 How I get my news

Day 7—Simple and easy way to get all my news. I seem to go here for everything.

Sketching on the plane this wayward 5th generation Californian travels back from sunny and warm San Francisco to not so sunny and warm Maine. It was a lovely week visiting my parents in the house I grew up in.

My parents Jim and Jackie Lawson—84 and 85 (that's me in the middle and I am not telling my age). Their day starts at the gym, then the dog park with their dog Freddie Brown (my adopted youngest brother), reading the San Francisco Chronicle and the Wall Street Journal, catching up on the market and Fox (UGH!) and then in the evening we all yell out answers to Jeapordy with a glass or two of Two Buck Chuck. They are amazing!

I love you mom and dad.

Every Day in May—EDM #106 Something tart or sour

Day 6 of the Every Day in May challenge—something tart or sour. Lots of lemon and lime trees in my parents garden here in Northern California. So it just seemed natural and so right to spend time outside in this perfect sunny warm weather sketching and painting on the patio for the Day 6 challenge.

"Out here havin fun in the warm California sun"

Back to gray rainy 55° Maine tomorrow...

Every Day in May—EDM #105 Scissors

Day 5 of the challenge—Scissors. I have way more than I need—hoarding? Most of these brightly colored handle scissors are in drawers, in the kitchen, my studio space, the hall cabinet, the bathroom and my bedside table. They are all more dull than sharp. There is only one pair in my "scissor collection" that is razor sharp for when I need to cut fabric. The rest I use to cut anything from paper to plastic to pruning plants and flowers to occasionally cutting wire.

My father is a bit of an "Orchidholic" and they are in full bloom in the garden right now. It is sunny and warm here in the San Francisco Bay Area so I enjoyed a few minutes last evening sketching in the garden.

I bought some Schmincke watercolors the other day and tried them for the first time on this little geranium painting out in the garden. They seem to be more opaque than the Daniel Smith and Holbien watercolors I started to use when I taught myself how to use watercolors several years ago. Wonderfully bright colors so I will continue to explore and develop the technique for this brand...hopefully...

Every Day in May—EDM #104 Salt & Pepper shakers

Day 4 of the Every Day in May challenge. Hand crafted salt and pepper grinders filled with sea salt and fresh pepper grounds.

"I'm out here having fun in that warm California sun" and visiting my parents in the house I grew up in the foothills behind Stanford University. After a long snowy winter in Maine with lots of work travel up and down the east coast, it is nice to just stop for awhile and enjoy some time with my family, visit with old friends and sketch and draw again. Hopefully I will shed another layer of sadness.

My mom watching Dancing with the Stars after starting her day at the dog park, an hour at the gym, shoe shopping with me, Jeopardy, dinner and a glass or two of Charles Shaw Chardonnay with my father and I. At $1.99 a bottle it is lovingly known as Two Buck Chuck and they have cases of it stacked up like cord wood in the garage.

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And speaking of the garage. There are shopping bags filled with tennis balls lined up next to the work bench. Seems as though my father takes his walks past the Swim and Tennis Club we belonged to when we were kids. He starting picking up the tennis balls along the way and took them home and tossed them in a bag. Now there are 5 bags!!! I always ask why, we then discuss as to what to do with them and then we all walk away. Must be part of my inheritence. Jerry always said I get my hoarding tendancies from my father...sounds about right.

Every Day in May—EDM #103 exercise equipment

Day 3 of the Every Day in May challenge. 2011 unfolded far from what I had planed and I could not imagine the rocky path I had suddenly stumbled on to. A friend suggested yoga for a way to cope with all the change happening in my life. So off I went to try hot power yoga at a new studio nearby. It has been a lifesaver both physically and mentally. I am a total addict. I am a yogi. So when I am not traveling for my consulting job, I am taking yoga classes. The combination of breathing which clears your head of clutter, the powerful poses that create long lean muscles and focusing on your core that makes you strong. I can now hold "crow" (shown above) for over 15-20 seconds...as long as I don't forget to breathe...

"I breathe in what I want and need and breathe out what I don't need anymore"

Every Day in May—EDM #102 a power plug

Day 2 of the Every Day in May challenge. A power plug from Ikea made this a much more fun thing to draw and paint.

Every Day in May—EDM #101 a bar of soap

After a long time of working through the sad days that crippled my creativity, I decided to take action to get back into doing what I used to love. Not having done much drawing and painting in almost two months, I am quite out of practice and I knew the longer time drifted the worse it was getting both in my head and what was coming out on paper. So the "Every Day in May/EDM" challenge sounded like just the kick in the butt I needed to jump start my creativity and get me sketching again. Besides, I am going to Lisbon in July for the Urban Sketchers Symposium and I need to get in sketching shape.

I did manage a quick sketch of my friend Mary's mother Julie, on Easter Sunday, and realized how much I love to draw, but it just wasn't enough . So here I go, a drawing every day for the next month...

Wish me luck

Blues and Greens

The Blues: I like when things are settled and dependable, but life isn’t like that and there are times when we outgrow something, it outgrows us, or things simply change. It is because of this impermanence that not only do painful times pass, but also great opportunities come. I remind myself that nothing is permanent about who I am or what I am capable of.

The Greens: I have discovered “Greenies” dental chews for dogs and Sophie loves them. Supposed they keep her teeth clean and are proven to fight gingivitus. They are not cheap, but you should see the proposal from my vet for Sophie to have her teeth cleaned—YIKES!

Lots of working, traveling and other things...

...that keep me from sketching.

I am so out of practice that my drawings are a mess. I walk by my sketchbook and paints everyday. Not sure when I will get back the enthusiasm and commitment of drawing again on a daily basis. I do so admire those who are able to keep that pace. You are amazing!

Influenced by the retail overload of Valentines Day, I bought a bar of dark chocolate with sea salt—YUM. A small bite a day until it was gone. Gone now—sad!

The vet said that Sophie was starting to develop a little gingivitis and I needed to start brushing her teeth everyday...EVERYDAY? Of course, she hates it, so it is not goimg so well.

The "Night Dog"

One day I decide to take the Balinese mesh canopy off the bed. It exposed the skylight in the ceiling letting more light into the room. However, as soon as it got dark outside and the lights went on in the bedroom all hell broke loose. Sophie climbed on the bed and starting staring, growling and barking at her reflection in the window. The "Night Dog" had come into our lives.

Ever vigilant, she will sometimes stand on her hind legs and growl at her tormentor. She eventually tires of the "Night Dog" and falls into blissful dog sleep. Of course, the dreaded "Night Dog" comes by every night and some early mornings.

What the "Night Dog" sees when it stops by to check on Sophie.

Snow and more snow and cold even colder

It just keeps snowing and snowing and last week it got colder and colder and colder. One morning when we awoke it was -20° and we needed to go out. Living in the city, with brick sidewalks that hold the cold and are covered with salt, make it very painful for Sophie. She would limp and hold up her paw. I would end up picking her up and carrying her to her favorite patch of grass, which is covered with two feet of snow. We finally stopped at the pet store down the block and walked home with new red boots.

At one point, I looked down and she only had on three boots—damn. We backtracked and there in a snow bank was the fourth boot. After this happened several times, the boots had to go back.

We're now using MUSHER'S wax just like the sled dogs in the Iditarod and it works great.

"MUSH, Sophie, MUSH"

Got the oils out...

Tulip and Lily

9 x 12

I got a pet portrait commission from a friend in California—Tulip and Lily these cute Boston Terriors. I decided to get the oils out for this one. I am not really thrilled with this so I may need to wipe it down and start over again. It isn't easy to do commissions. You never know what they may want, especially if you don't do them very often.

Tulip and Lily in progess.

Sophie

6 x6 oil on masonite

I hate waste paint so I used the extra to do a quick study of Sophie as she sat by the fire on a cold evening here in Maine.

Dayu

6 x 6 oil on masonite

With more leftover paint I did a portrait of a friend in Bali.

Still traveling and working...

I spend a fair amount of time at LaGuardia airport. It is the "one-stop" between Portland and DC. I do not sketch as much as I would like when I am drifting around airports. I wish I had more discipline, but I find I spend more time reading.

"All those vitamins aren't to keep death at bay, they're to keep deterioration at bay" (Jeanne Moreau)

I am consulting for a supplement company so I am uncovering the mysteries of vitamins. This is a new supplement that I am taking that is great and has all the benefits listed below.

A HIGH-DHA, purified, omega-3 oil called CALAMARINE--extracted from deep ocean squid--a pure, sustainable resource that’s virtually IMMUNE to overfishing. CALAMARINE is the ONLY way to get the HIGH levels of DHA your heart (and your whole body) is screaming for. A highly potent form of CoQ10 (called Hydro Q-Sorb).This new CoQ10 makes the old stuff look like a Model T. In clinical testing, Hydro Q-Sorb was eight times more absorbable than old-fashioned, powdered CoQ10. A form of L-carnitine that’s more bioavailable than any other formula available today. L-carnitine is nature’s “delivery system” that helps keep your heart cells active and healthy. One of the purest, all-natural vitamin E’s available anywhere. This powerhouse antioxidant keeps your arteries healthy at the cellular level. Essential folic acid and B vitamins designed to support lower homocysteine levels, healthy blood flow, and healthy arteries. They also help magnify your immunity, supercharge your energy levels, and more

You ought to try Omega Q Plus by Dr Stephan Sinatra. It's great!

Working and traveling a lot...sketching and painting not so much

A wonderful consulting job came my way around Christmas that I couldn't pass up. So since then, every week I am on plane to the Washington DC area where I spend 2 to 3 days on a creative rebranding project. I found Sophie sitting in my suitcase the first time I was packing for my new job, but when she found out that she would be going to the cottage on the beach in Cape Elizabeth she is now absolutely fine with my packing.

Winter travel in the east coast can be quite challenging. My flight to Portland was canceled last week because of snow. 18 inches in Portland so the airport was closed. I made it home a day later than planned. Such is life as a consultant.

I am working with a corporation that sells supplements through several catalogs. It is quite interesting to be learning more about the mysterious world of supplements.

Last portrait class study

22" x 30" graphic stick

I have been a little under the weather lately and didn't have much energy for the last portrait class I took this fall quarter. Two models seemed daunting.

I had just been to The National Gallery in Washington DC where I had spent time looking at the work of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. He was masterly at capturing groups of people and crowd scenes in which the figures are highly individualized. So with these two models I tried to achieve that feeling. They were actually sitting further apart with space in between them but I decided to draw them closer together. I liked the way his light skin profile worked against her dark skin.

Washington DC—Day 2

My second day in DC and just as cold as the first one. Back on the Metro to the Smithsonian and almost everyone is alseep.

I spent sevral hours exploring the exhibits in The Museum of American History. One of my favorite's was Julia Child's "Bon Appetite" exhibit. She was such a pioneer. She donated her kitchen to the museum where it was recontructed exactly as she had it in Cambridge Massachusetts, minus the asbestos linoleum. I stood for quite a while watching monitors of her old shows. What a great spirit!

Card # 3233—The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum where I was absolutely awed by the story that was told as I made my way through the four floors of the building. As you enter the elevator to start at the top floor you are given an identification card. My card was # 3233 belonging to Holocaust survivor Magna Hellinger telling her story. Though all the museums are spectacular this one is truly an experience that is unforgetable.

After six hours I was back on the Metro. Suddenly we stopped and were told to get off because of problems with the brakes. We all filed off and everyone drifted across the plarform and got on the orange line. I was troubled since I knew the blue line would take me to my hotel. Why was everyone getting on the orange line and where was it going? I stayed back and waited thinking I could get a cab if all else failed.

Eventually a train for the blue line showed up and I made it safely back to the hotel.

Another great day in Washington DC with my crappy sketchbook. I know better now!