One More Piece! One More Presentation!

It was a tense day.
I had applied for a second AIR. It is rarely done but I have such a great idea.... so it will have to wait.
I can do it in another Park, but this was inspired by the month I spent there.  I am going to talk to Kip later about a different plan, but no PEFO for me in 2018... Stay tuned, I am branching out.

And I have not updated, but I do have another presentation tomorrow at the Tempe Artist Guild in Friendship Villiage, 2645 E. Southern Ave, Tempe AZ.   I will be running the artist critique at 5:30, with the business meeting at 6:30 and ME at 7:30 to 8:30!
So there you are!

While waiting for good or bad news, I did another piece.  Many of these will be entries in the Mountain Oyster Club in Tucson in November.  What a lot of exciting reference I have!!

Pronghorn on Birch Panel

I needed to use up some of the amazing wildlife stuff I had.   Trying to be more iconic, I got the iconic beasties of the park.  Pronghorn.
This couple was hanging out on the amazing last trek down.  He decided to rest and the three girls in his gang sort of wandered around.  This little girl decided to hang and chat.

I had a number of these panels from another project.  10" square with 2"deep sides, I never liked painting over the beautiful wood.  Seems as though the colors just organically tie in...
Start:

Finished

For Real. Last Day.....For June.....

Seriously this was as wonderful as the last last day I had here! I woke up fully intending to hike, but had a headache and my knees did not work from all that sitting yesterday, so although it was past Sunrise, I went driving into the park.

First absolute excitement was elk!



Elk makes sense in the mountains, but not on the plains out here. I saw two, and they were running and running and running. I believe it was easily 20 miles to 30 an hour I would race forward beyond them, try to set up where they would be being, wait for them to come at me and boom they were past. It was pretty damned exciting!!!










Finally, they got tired of racing me and just crossed the road...

A little farther down the road I saw more Pronghorn but this time I saw two guys, hanging out, butting heads! Like, practicing for the real thing, and I even got some video!




But that was not all.
I saw a solo guy, who apparently had itchy horns, as he was rubbing them in the bushes in a dry wash.  Odd indeed, and I asked Andy, the biologist and he said he would talk to the pronghorn guy!!1

And just round the end, I saw a family of one big guy and his girls...
They apparently had worn him out, as he just decided to enjoy the early morning sitting down!

Because the trip went farther than I had planned and I thought it would be a good idea to use the restrooms at the South, which was not open, I figured it would be a good time to go pick up more rocks.
I got a big handful, and came home and wash them, and wrote Holbrook on the side of all of them, because I want to make 100% absolutely sure no one thinks I'm taking them from in the park. I suppose I should have showed them to someone when I came in the first time, but it seemed kind of dumb...


Jorge told me there are usually coyotes over by the parking lot and the propane tanks. He said afternoon. I just came home from sweating and its 4:30, but he probably means evenings...
With no photos it doesn't really matter when I stop the blog, I will fix it all up when I get home. Biggest problem is I have a whopping 30 photos left to take on my photo card!

****
Turns out coyotes do not feel like they need to be in my portfolio, but it was a great, cloudless evening.  WAY windy, but there is an amazing NON sunset that happens on these nights.
And there was a pretty spectacular clear, bright moon... WISH I had a real camera.....

Dawn...Day Two.

I am finding it is easier to blog as I find WiFi.  So here it is noon and the day is OVER!!
I tried taking the Thing's advice and when he got to digging holes under my head and the stars stopped twinkling, I decided to try this dawn thing again.
No deer today.  No lovely clouds so just the stripes of red turning from blue.
I brewed a pot to fill my mug and the sun was clearing the horizon as I jumped into the car.

I had never seen thelight from the East before.   I had determined that my residency was going to be about using all of the resources (well, not the extreme or terribly physical ones) that I could avail myself of and I had 12 hours alone with the place no other travelers had.

I have an unhappy (well, not so much as far as sleeping goes) report.  The Tee Pees are not exciting in the morning.  Not at all!  they are shadowed and gray and not the ever changing and radiant source of inspiration I have come to love.  I was not awe-struck... and I tried... but I do believe if I were a bit more fit, I would recommend others to see what happened in Blue Mesa and leave so you could see the sun paint the landscape.

But seriously, I was still hunting my wildlife.
Ravens had a couple of conventions in very odd places, just to defy me.  Bunnies were there but not too abundant, and I spied 5 pronghorn through out, but I finally found my Jacks!!
Not the BEST ref but they were out and about and with some editing, clear and usable shots!!
Also a great little ground squirrel on a rock, and I have already started a very small rock art for demo purposes of him.

It was productive!

I am trying hard to see if I can get more beasties under my belt.  I sometimes feel like I am doing nothing.   Yesterday I did work a bit more on Jane, but must say, my eyes get burned out on going through my photos, the wind and a day full of pastels.  Back to my glasses and they give me headaches!

I also got invited to go on a bird survey (which is the real reason I am practicing early rising) and I WANT to, but I seriously fear I could be an asset.  I would not whine, but do not want to be left in a pile while they go be busy and I gasp for water, or air or new kneecaps.   Will give it tomorrow and if I am not shaping up, go tell him I may no show.
AND the reason I am so anxious to help is that ANDY HAS RUBBER CEMENT!!! (Andy is the Park biologist.  FINALLY I am bumping into the correct people with the information I seek.  NOW, with one week left....)
Now I can finish my little house finch and see how it turns out!!!

Finally, I am going to prep another demo of good old 43!  I left a snapshot in Andy's office as the biology pro has yet to spot the lonely ram who has wandered the park at least since I saw him last year.




Perhaps these stone pieces will get some progress shots.
I tend to work at night to fight off a cat who needs entertainment and if I get moving in public spaces, I may find myself needing more chat breaks and snaps I go.




The excitement (other excitement) of the day was visitation by the plumbing crew to be sure my fire sprinkler system and tap water (which they have no idea what a blessing it is to turn on the tap and DRINK TASTY WATER is for a Phonecian who goes to the water machine every few days like the settlers went to the well!  It is heaven!!) and we chatted in the casita.
Good times!!!

Quest for Nail Clippers,

Okay, tonight is the full moon...Unfortunately, even with clouds that let me sleep thorough the sun searing in, the cat began his wake up call at 4!!  He may sleep in the bathroom if this is not going to calm down.  Should have known. Also should have brought nail clippers.  My Swiss Army scissors just don't hack it.  He was so sweet yesterday it was amazing!

Second try at the day, I got up and began sketching Jorge, my favorite (today...) ranger in the entry box! I am just going to do a nice watercolor and set up anywhere out of the wind.  That is what I am inspired by.

Trying to post my blog over at PDVC, I brought a minimal bunch of stuff and it is always too much.  JUST a bit of cash and the laptop.  Had a "trip" on the patio, looking for better signal out of the sun and took a header.  In my brain, as I fell, I was trying to figure out how to not crash the computer, but how do I not do serious injury.. couple of faster and faster missteps and down we went.  Not hurt but fearful of damage to my little toy link to the outside world, it landed as a teepee butt up and scratched its edges.  I pushed the framework back and heard little clicks and the screen was still working so I had hope.
It seriously had a migraine, but I just kept rebooting (... when in doubt, just reboot) and it seems to have a lingering stick when looking for my files, but IT WORKS!!!
NOW I have a reason for aches and pains!  Double win!

Discovered Kip had gone south as I was up there.  My knees are a bit shaky and my head bounced a bit, not on the ground, just from the jostle.  Feeling old I decided to hit the sheets for a little while then give it a try... and I HEARD THUNDER!  READY for the rain and all the color that comes with it! Set up so I could see and started painting in the kitchen in the natural light.  Forgot the nap and was all set...

....and it stopped.  Well, perhaps tomorrow.  It smelled so amazing!

I decided one more jaunt down around closing to see if Dennis was right again.  He was. Found ONE solitary but amazing set of progs!... here is how dedicated I am (and have better vision than I thought)  This is the scenery in low 5 ish light....where the guy was:


I mostly don't like how my camera does not have a viewfinder, but I can sure use these grainy enlargements at like 85x zoom!

I ran out of the park to see if I could get some nail clippers for the cat, found the tourist trap just outside the south entry closes at 5.  But if you want to bring home your own rock, it is MUCH cheaper than the fine for pilfering from the park.  Actually there were some BEAUTIFUL rocks in the mortar of the shop with the concrete teepees and way better karma than from the park!

I came back to the visitor center and met a kid practically born in the park. She was running the shop and we hit it of great.  Really fine artist in her own right and we both loved the park for the things and the people who make it go.

While I wi-fied, I here is the view of the ceiling:

And the observation room where I was painting on Friday.

If the cat lets, me, I feel like it will  be an early evening.  If not, more to do on Jorge.
 The trip home had some stupendous tonal images.  A sunset without color over scenery of grays and brown.   Garish in the minimalism.
IF I paint scenery, that will be the stuff.

I also got the two tourist books that they all have recommended and if it is nasty tomorrow, we will try laundry and more wet photos and painting,  probably a day doing this and watching this on the bed:

 By the way... no nail clippers without a trip to Holbrook.

Less than a month

Although I hope this blog will be a visual journal, I find the month counting down is very nondescript.  I am trying to think ahead and shut things down at home. I have cancelled cable.
This is heart-stopping!
Cord cutting is not part of the requirements, but as I know there is no entertainment and I might have limited internet, I might as well see what my tiny laptop and phone data can do for me on the road.
(I will not be FULLY disconnected as I signed up for the online cable offer, so ..... I may be found in a Holbrook McDonalds loading missed episodes into my head over a burger)

I have had a lot of friends encourage me with my landscapes.
This is NOT my thing.
I am not thinking of clothes, as one might for a month on the road, rather whether to pack a lot of canvas or paper and how to keep it safe on the road and from my roommate (a cat who believes furniture keeps items from their natural home ON THE FLOOR)

...and whether I should do all water media, bring the pastels or/and oils?  This is like figuring how to put your house in your trunk!

Below is a sketch from my trip last year of the pronghorn in the park.

I hope there will be a LOT of visitors with feathers and fur to keep me busy, but I have to work hard to let the experiences to come, flow over me.
I am the sort who tends to push the river....