Another Mixed Bag

A little of this and a little of that today.  Once again I am feeling very over-extended.  Tomorrow is a bit of a nightmare.  Workmen coming at 7:30 a.m., painting from 10:00 - 12:00, crazy quilting from 

1:00 to 3:00, home to let in another worker at 4:00, and finally, off to our friends' house to watch the last in the women's basketball championship series.  That is a bit tight, but what is really getting me crazy is the list of Important Things that Must Be Done Soon!  When am I going to get to that list?

So, I will return to my New Year's resolutions, take a deep breath, and deal.  I'll let you know how that works!

Anyway, here's a stress reliever - another day in Key West!

This is a cruise ship coming in to dock in the early morning; it may not look very large at this point, but oh, my!  They are BIG!

This is a street scene that with the buildings, people, bicycles, colors, and palm trees all of which say Key West to me.

Another specimen that I have to check in my tropical plants of Florida book.  I really need to remember that before I start writing entries!

I have several (okay, many) photos taken in and around the harbor, but I eventually found what really said "painting" to me.  These are the scruffier boats in the harbor.  These are the ones people like you and me use to go out and catch fish or to putter around for a bit. They are clearly banged and battered, not spiffy like the clean white schooners, torpedo boats, or cruisers that shriek wealth and privilege.  It's not my favorite shot of these hard-working boats, but it's one I took as we wandered around on the seventeenth.

While we were nosing around the harbor, we headed over to the Sea Turtle Museum.  It didn't have a lot to see, but it was worth going to.  It's run by the volunteers who watch over the sea turtles nesting sites and protect the hatchlings.  They count the number of hatched eggs, take care of the late hatchlings that frequently have trouble getting to the sea, as well as a lot of record keeping.  It also had a section on the turtle industry, the historic slaughter of sea turtles for food.  Indeed, the building was once part of a turtle cannery, I think.  It was a big industry for some time.  The gray building at the right is the Museum.

This is just an amusing sign post we passed on our way back to our hotel.

Butterfly House

Whoever does the research for this blog should be fired.  Last week photographs of quilts were mistakenly said to be in the Hemingway house.  WRONG!!! They were in the Audubon home.  Whew, I certainly feel better now that I corrected her mistake.  There will be strong words, shaking of finger, and stamping of feet going on the next time I see her (in the mirror)!

It was Thursday, March 17th that we went to the Butterfly House in Key West.  My photographs do not do it justice (my new camera does not have a rapid fire option - or if it does, I haven't found it, yet), but I will post a few of them for you to see - with a caveat.  The Butterfly House was small and very crowded with both butterflies and people.  Our guide tried to give us a tour, but other visitors want his attention also.  As a result, he was distracted from what he was saying by the questions of others, I was too far away to hear him anyway, and as a result, I can't tell you the names of the butterflies. 

Don't strain to find the butterfly in the next one as it's merely a photo of a lovely blossom.

This is not a butterfly, it's the wonderful, huge  cecropia moth.

At the end of the "tour", we were given free packets of common milkweed which made up for any disgruntlement I may have felt about missing out on information.  

I just hope the chipmunks won't like milkweed!

Key West - Hemingway House

Famous for polydactyl cats, the Hemingway House was interesting for some other things as well.  First though, a few photos of a few of the 54 many-toed cats:

No pictures of their toes, you'll notice.  They seemed to be shy about showing their prized paws to curious photographers.

You'll see what caught my eye inside the house.

Outside was just as attractive as most places in Key West.  Glorious plantings and occasionally some notable pottery such as this.

Lovely home!

Key West - Sketchbook

As I mentioned in another entry, one of the best things for me in this trip to Key West was free time.  That is a rare commodity when on a Road Scholar trip, but I hope to be able to explain to them how important that can be.  Some of of our fellow "scholars" need some time just to rest, some like to be able to re-visit sites, explore on their own, or just sit and absorb the locale.  For me, I finally had time to sketch.

Our first period of freedom came when we were still in the first hotel.  That hotel was located by the harbor where the cruise ships came in to dock.  As a result it was a very busy place so I worried about finding something that would resonate with me as interesting to sketch.  D wanted to lie down for a bit so I went out on the balcony, and there I found what I was looking for.  An umbrella with wonderful colors and a flowering tree down by the pool -

These sketches are all done with watercolor and ink.  The next one is unfinished.  It started out as a study in perspective.  I was sitting on the balcony off in the corner as far away from the second chair (the oval shape in outline only) as I could get.  I sat that way so I could draw both our balcony and the one at right angles to us.  In the empty space in the corner between the balconies were plants reaching up from the ground level below and a palm tree with an interesting frond.  I wanted to capture the contrast between the rather sterile building with the vegetation.  The tall leaves of some of the plants below will show between the railings of the balcony - if I ever get around to finishing it.

After the program was over, we stayed in Key West for some additional days.  That meant we had to move to different hotel (the original was full).  This next hotel was smaller and more like "old Florida".  Instead of modern surroundings, the hotel was a group of houses that had been re-figured as hotel rooms and felt more intimate.  The garden areas were very carefully tended.  The following sketch is area where we ate breakfast.

It's hard to make out what is what in this photo of the sketch, but part of that was intentional.  I wanted to emphasize the lushness we saw all around us.  And to be honest, part of it was a mistake. My fountain pens were in my luggage which I checked.  Lack of pressurization in the luggage compartment of the plane forced the ink out of the pen.  Forgetting that, when I started to draw into this painted part, the ink gushed out and made a much wider line than anticipated.  So then I decided to make the "mistake" deliberate and draw more using that heavier line.  Still not satisfied, I added the touches of orange and bits of red and red-violet.  Boom, Tropical Profusion (or does that sound too much like a juice?).

Tuesday - Painting

No entry yesterday because D and I went to watch the UConn women's basketball game with friends.  It was a very exciting game as Texas gave them the most difficult game UConn has had so far.  In hindsight, I think it was good for them to have that experience at that point because now they have a week to get themselves mentally prepared for the Final Four games.  We will keep watching and pulling for them.

Today I went to painting.  While it was wonderful to be back, it was frustrating because I didn't have anything prepared that I wanted to work on.  I had my sketches from our Key West trip to share, as well as several possible photographs to work on after Sharon and I discussed whether they were worth it (they were with some compositional changes) and whether they should be worked on with water color or oil.  Once those decisions were made, I went back to work on the day lily.  I didn't want to waste Sharon's or my time on drawing whichever photo I chose while in class.  That's something I can do by myself; while in class I need to have her input on the painting part.  It was great being back with my friends and working again.

When I got home, I got involved with several other activities and completely forgot to take any pictures of today's work (frankly, hardly worth my time to take photos or your time to see the work!) or of my sketchbook entries.  

It's taking a while to get back into the swing of things, but I'll make it sooner or later.

One of many photos of orchids from Key West - in this one, I love the shadow:

Key West - Day 2, the Evening Movie and Consequences

How could I have forgotten to tell you about our evening activity on Day 2?  We went to see the movie Fugitive Kind with a very young Marlon Brando, equally young Joanne Woodward, and the Italian actress Anna Magnana.  I had forgotten how much a heart throb Brando was and how lovely Joanne Woodward was (and still is in my estimation).   I didn't know anything about Magnana, but she was a big name in Italy who sort of learned English specifically for this movie, and who became a respected actress here, too. Tennessee Williams wrote the original play so it was an important movie in many ways.

I didn't like it very much.  I'm not sure I really understood it.  I don't know a great deal about Williams nor have I read more than one or two of his plays.  There are several reasons for all that.

Among them, may be the fact that I was an English literature major.  I grew up listening to my mother read English authors outloud as well as reading myself mostly children's literature written by British authors.  Yes, there were also books by Americans but not as many.  I chose to study what I knew and loved - English lit, and I didn't study American lit until I decided to become a teacher when I realized I needed to know our authors as well.  I also must confess that I had a difficult time with Tennessee Williams, but that was probably because I was too young to understand what he wanted and needed to convey.  After watching the movie, I was thoroughly depressed and not sure why it was such an unremittingly, unrelievedly dark plot.  There is no light at the end of that tunnel at all!  

So what.  Well, here it is.  Although I have an outsider's understanding of the huge issue his homosexuality was, there's more to the man than that. Now I have have to find out more about Tennessee W than we learned when visiting his Key West home.   Now I have to read more of his plays (oh, yippee!) and see if I can find out what drove him. And now I may also have to read other literature written at that time because I know that he was not the only dark writer.  So that also leads me to think I'd better return to American history of that time, also.

Oh my, back to history again.  First Truman and now the playwright Williams.

I think I need a pretty picture.

Key West - Day 2

Today I'll share some highlights from our second day in Key West which included a morning talk about our 33rd president, Harry S. Truman.  I know I passed the American history courses I had to take the last two years of high school.  History was something I enjoyed - at least until we reached American history in the 1850's.  Then my interest began to wane as we learned about the Civil War, resurfaced off and on until the World Wars, and then went to sleep from the Korean Conflict on.  So I guess it isn't really a surprise that I've forgotten what I memorized to pass the exams.  Anyway, I was fascinated with this lecture (yes, it's really me writing this!) most of which was new to me.  I tried to keep in mind that I was listening to someone whose job it was to show Truman as a model president, but the speaker did make a good case in the little time he had.  

After the lecture, we were taken on a walk down to the harbor for a cruise on the schooner Appledore II.  Unfortunately, I don't have a good photo of the ship because I couldn't get far enough away from it to take a photo without falling in the water.  I didn't feel like doing that even though the temperature was such that it might have felt good.

These are the pictures from the cruise started with proof that I was at least on the schooner:

View off the starboard bow.

 

These next photos are only two of many, many pictures I took of the sails.  They were so beautiful against the blue sky.

The coils of rope - we watched as the crew wrapped these very carefully.  They started over several times until they were satisfied they'd done it correctly.  Makes me think of the spools of my embroidery thread; wish the crew would wrap them neatly for me!

Parasailers in the distance - 

 and a shrimp trawler.

A sailboat and a channel marker:

This second set of photos you see here are from the harbor as we wandered around starting with a sail boat.

The Coast Guard -

The harbor -

D loitering.

Love the reflections:

All of these are wonderful reminders of our trip, but none of these make me want to paint as is.  I mean, think about it, a watercolor painting with all these white boats?  And the boats are so pretty and clean and . . . . not my style.  

I found some that I would definitely paint, but you won't see those photos for a few days.

Key West - Introductory Day 1

We chose Key West as a destination for this year because  - well, there were several reasons.  First, D really feels the lack of sunlight most in March.  Second, I've always wanted to go to Key West because so many people talked about it with enthusiasm and there are special sights there.  Third, we have friends who are fun to travel with who were willing to go on this adventure with us. Fourth, there was a Road Scholar trip we could take.

On the day we arrived, we had time to check in to our hotel (the Westin) which was probably the most posh place Road Scholar has booked in our experience.  We met the other members of our group, had a quick orientation, and went to dinner in the hotel.  After dinner, we listened to a local deep sea diver tell us about the shipwreckers and the salvage business. It was fascinating!  I'd never really believed either career as reliable roads to fame and fortune outside the covers of books.  Well, I was very wrong!

That and a good night's sleep was the end of the first day.  Photos?  The deluge will begin tomorrow, but I took only about 1,050 on this trip . . .

Smiley face!

Local Color - Before It's Too Late

Now that spring feels that it has arrived and daffodils are poking up, something else has arrived.  Bulldozers.  Builders are getting ready to take over more farm land to make new landscapes.  Developments.  Progress.

We've been in this area, in this house since 1979 so the change is hard to see.  Little by little, we are becoming part of suburbia.  I do try to remember the time I asked my mother if she knew this part of the Capital District (my family lived in this part of the world until 1946 and then started moving all over).   She explained that since this was nothing but country, they never really traveled out this way.  To put it all in perspective, where I live was once part of a farm and was turned into a development so  - time marches on and things change.

However, before these farms and old homes are gone, I wanted to take some pictures.  That bulldozer told me, I don't have very much time.  I took two photos, and then I played with them.  Oh, did I have fun!

This is the farm down the road.  The field in the foreground is where I first saw the bulldozer.  As I was driving by one day, I fell in love with the sky and the light. 

I cropped and lightened the photo to make the barn more visible.

Then I decided to have fun; isn't this one stunning?  It's winter again . . .

Which I turned into summer. This one would be such fun to paint!  

Then a little later in the week, I stopped to take a picture of one of my favorite oak trees before it leafs out.  I wanted the skeleton of the tree to be visible.  Fortunately, the old farmhouse would necessarily be part of the picture.  That farmhouse has been lovingly brought into the current century. Sadly the land behind and beside the farmhouse has been sold and is already under construction so there's no room for delay.

That oak tree - isn't it wonderful?

Here's the same photo with a "poster" effect.  I like how "posterizing" this picture emphasized what was going on in the sky, made the house with its yellow doors recede, and took away all the tree's competition.  Another possible painting - it would be fun, I think,and a good study.

This one, I really like - a lot!  Is it a painting?  I don't think there's enough color for that, but I like the way the tree glows.

And this is another one that is positively striking. Again, not a painting but a memorable photo.

I can hear some of you already.  You noticed that I am taking these old farms, recording them so they won't be lost, but then turning those photos into a very modern statement.  Well, I will remember these places very well after spending all this time with them.  An";right and proper so to do" because time moves on and things (including photography) change.

It's all progress, and it helps me if I can make it something attractive.

Applique X 2

The other day when I talked about the meeting of friends for some sewing, laughter, and chatter I may - or may not - have mentioned I was starting a "primitive" wool applique project.  SMcG and I are working on the same project which is why we were cutting and sharing fabrics for our backgrounds.  The pattern comes from Buttermilk Basin, and we both have our own ideas about how we want the finished project will look.  SMcG is pure primitive in her ethos, and I have to "pretty" up everything.

Here is the almost-finished first block:

Wow, I do wish I could figure out the color issue!  You'd never know it, but the background of this block is green and the moon is a purple and gray plaid.  This project is a delight because it means working with wool and using embroidery.  That's where I will be a little less "primitive" than some.  I will be using more embroidery stitches than is usual with this style.  But the biggest difference is that I may "correct" some of the patterns.  Why do you suppose that we think folk art was done by people who didn't know anything about drawing?  Okay, some work is definitely rough, but not every artist drew like a child!  However, it can be charming.  It will be fun to compare my project with SMcG.  And here's my prediction: SMcG's work will not be that different overall!

This makes me giggle because this afternoon I started to make myself a new case for my Kindle (the old one wore out).  For the outside I chose a "modern" black with a large taupe print and planned to use a Kaffe Fasset for the lining.  However, for the outer pocket I picked this black with the small gray and off-white print.  Looking at the Fasset I decided to do something new.  I cut out the large print and plan to applique it on the front of the pocket (which will be lined with the same material).  While I've done broderie perse (that's what this is technique is called) before, I've never done it with such contrast.  

 

I can't wait to see how it turns out!