Sister and I are in the Big Apple! It's so much fun to be here with a first-timer, so see her wide-eyed delight at walking into Times Square at night. I remember that feeling so well. I couldn't wipe the smile off my face, either. We promenaded arm-in-arm for quite a while before and after our dinner at the Hard Rock Café. Tomorrow: north to the museums and Central Park. Stay tuned!
Does pacing around Terminal 4 at LAX while waiting for my sister to arrive count as exercise? Here are some of my fellow waiters.
I had a crazy busy day today. When all the paying work was done, I cleaned the house in preparation for sister's arrival from Australia tomorrow (yes, she will be here IN THE MORNING!!!). So it wasn't till 10:30pm that I headed out with my sketchbook. I sat in on a gutter to draw this scene, but I could barely see what I was drawing (lousy light, no glasses). When I stood up to leave, I found that the back of my skirt had been happily wicking up the water in the gutter, and it flapped drippily against the back of my legs all the way home. The things we endure in the name of daily sketchercize ;-)
It was 100°F here today (37°C) so finding somewhere in the shade to sit and draw was my primary goal. This is as far as I got on this sketch before the ants crawling up my legs sent me packing.
My friend Lola asked me to make her a bag she could take on her sign language interpreting assignments. It had to be big enough to hold a FedEx envelope, and have a pocket for her flashlight. Apart from that, she said, "Surprise me." I selected some fabric and got her approval before proceeding, but when it came to embellishing the bag, I scoured my stash for inspiration. To my delight, I came across these green antique gloves I bought (and sketched) last year. I shaped them into the sign for "interpret" and sewed them on. Voila! I love it, and hope Lola does too!
Spotted in the carpark (parking lot) of my local shopping centre. I liked the contrast between the two plants in close juxtaposition.
I took Lauren to the Calabasas Fine Arts Festival today. This is a sketch of Marston Smith, who was there in a kilt with his electric cello. Woah, drawing people is hard.
Evie and I did Walk 15 from Walking L.A., in West Hollywood. Sister, NEXT weekend YOU will be joining us on our walk. Yayyyyy!!! (My sister is coming, my sister is coming.)
While the meatloaf was cooking I went looking for something interesting to draw, and found a gigantic yellow egg billboard in someone's front yard.
At work today I took a break and went for a walk. I got this far drawing the palms above a roofline, when my cell phone rang and Lisa asked, "Are you coming back?" so I had to leave it at that.
I inadvertently left home without a drawing implement, so that dictated the direction I would take: to the nearest place to buy a pen, Target. As I left the store, I pondered on the thought that I am not too adept at drawing architecture, cars, or people, three subjects which abound in L.A. I suspect my skills will improve with a year of sketchercize. On the way home I found somewhere to perch in the shade: here's what was across the road.
I had an appointment in the Miracle Mile district of Wilshire today, so I went early enough to allow for walking and sketching around the LA County Museum of Art and La Brea Tar Pits.
Woodvale Ct, near me, is rather steep, so I like to climb it to get my heart pumping. At the highest point of the road, I stopped and drew a few of the houses below me, with a badly pruned pine tree in the foreground. The hill extends above the road too, and after finishing my sketch, I clambered up through the deep Wandering Jew to one of the concrete runoff channels that encircles it. There I disturbed the red-tailed hawk that lives in these parts. (There may be more than one, but as I only ever see one at a time, I think of him as a loner.) He soared off, and last I saw was his majestic form high in the sky, with the craggy Chatsworth Hills in the distance.
Evie and I did walks 13 (Laurel Canyon) and 14 (Sunset Strip) from Walking L.A. today. This little stone angel was sitting on a steep concrete staircase in Laurel Canyon, above Jim Morrison's former residence.
More front yard excesses. I could only draw a small selection of them in my frame. (I've been carrying a viewfinder with me in an attempt to both select and contain my subject.)
There's a guy (I presume it's a guy, in fact, I presume it's an old guy) near here who makes fake wishing wells and birdhouses and such-like rustic wooden yard ornamentations, and sells them from his garage. His own front yard is liberally adorned with a lighthouse, a waterwheel, a wishing well, and many, many non-functional birdhouses. Lauren loves walking past, and has frequently suggested that we get a wishing well for our place. I don't think so.
This morning at breakfast we heard some rather loud quacking (not a normal birdsong around here). A little stickybeaking over the neighbour's fence revealed a duck happily swimming in their pool. While I went to get my camera, she was joined by a drake. Then they were ... conjoined. Who needs Discovery Channel when you can see antics like this right here in the suburbs?
I'm going to do it. Yes, I'm going to do it. I'm taking the baton from Julie, and committing to daily sketchercize every day for a year. I was so inspired a year ago when she started her challenge, and I'm still so very impressed with her for keeping it up through horrible weather, illness, heavy workload, and the demands of her family. If she can do it, so can I.
Did a press check today, which, as always, required quite a bit of sitting around and waiting. All my colleagues brought their laptops, but I was armed only with a sketchbook.
Rag Rug #2, in cool colours. It hasn't been blocked yet ... this is hot off the crochet hook!
Crocheted rag rug, in warm tones. Now I think I'll make one in cool colours. What a great way to use up the stash. Fast and gratifying.
I have been working less this week, so besides getting the house really clean, I've actually – gasp – walked and drawn too. This rusty, dusty tap was discovered near the post office. I love having time for this kind of thing. But I know that declaring lack of time is just an excuse. Julie has managed to walk and draw every single day for nearly a year, and she has four children (including a toddler) and her own business!
Some people continually tweak, rearrange, and beautify their surroundings. I am not one of them. Even though I'm a visual artist, I tend to zone out my physical surroundings fairly quickly, and stop noticing if something's ugly. But last night I was on a cleaning jag in the kitchen, which got me looking at the venetian blind above the sink. I decided that Josh was right, we really needed to do something else with the window treatment. So I dug through my fabric stash and found these appliquéd café curtains I bought at an op shop years ago. They fit the width just fine, but because they're short, they reveal the view completely, which left me staring at the empty shelf outside the window. So this morning I made a quick trip to the garden center for some drought-hardy colourful plants (previous experience has taught me that even Mediterranean herbs do not thrive on that baking window ledge). And now, wow. What a difference when you walk into the kitchen. I love it.
Herbed Bubble Bread with Sun-Dried Tomatoes, made in the new tube pan Evie gave me for my birthday. Paired with thick pea soup, it was greeted with enthusiasm by the starving hordes around the dinner table. Love that :-)
The garden is planted. This shot was taken in the gloaming; it was nearly dark, and required a long exposure. I sat the camera on the garden's edging and was pretty pleased with the crispness I achieved, just keeping it steady by hand.
Booties, completed. I think this might be the first pair of booties I've ever made! Josh looked alarmed when he saw what I was making, and asked if I had something I needed to tell him :-)
