April showers

Now is when the trees and flowers begin to bud in southeast Massachusetts.

a dream of springtime

Yesterday on Cape Cod came several more inches of snow.  Last night I dreamt of bright green springtime amongst patches of heavy winter snow.  Two distinct seasons of the year in one landscape.

New England snow globe

Wind and snow, and then more snow and wind.  Not that it matters too much more than a hill of Boston baked beans, but this wickedly wild winter weather does in fact extend beyond the Boston city limits.  Cape Cod is only about fifty miles away.  I love this extreme winter weather!

frogs and people and cats

Drawn with ink, painted with coffee.

half-a-Chinese firedrill

Having fun in the pouring rain while waiting for the light in the early morning of Christmas in Buzzards Bay on Cape Cod in Massachusetts.  Both refused to budge from their seating, so there the pair sat in the car in the pouring rain while watching the light turn from red to green and back to red again.

peenut

Drawn while on hold waiting for "the next available customer service representative".

tooth and nail

This here is genuine, authenticated migraine therapy art.  I have had them for years but always opt to spend the hours doing what I call 'comfort art'.  No head under a pillow one hibernating in bed  Just natural light and a very quiet space with paper and pen.  Since I've been working on this style of art the past few days, maybe it's a premonition of a migraine to come.  If it wasn't so much challenging fun and soothing comfort for the brain, the headaches would be the terrible awfulness that migraine people all know all so well.

Ink on bristol board.  8x10"

electric chickens

After 6 weeks in New England, I'm back in Texas. I have 2 weeks to pack up, and then move to New England. I've always wanted to live there, and now it's happening! Yikes!

I'm excited but will really miss Wimbereley. Such a great little community of creative, eclectic hippies, with the mixture of wealthy, retiring Republicans from Houston and Dallas. I wish the best of good energies to Wimberley for preserving it's charm and beauty. And thank you for the past eight years of inspiration.

Wimberley sketches

Left: the low water crossing on the Blanco River. When the river is flowing after a storm, this road is closed. Fulton Ranch Road.

Right: 16100 Ranch Road 12. Sometimes known as the "igloo" place. Blooming purple sage in the foreground. WoodCreek water tower in the background.

things

Individual drawings from a 3 x 4 inch sketchbook I keep in my purse. The more urban things are from downtown Salt Lake City. The others are from the rural areas of the Texas Hill Country.

palm fronds

These short palm trees create nice shade. While in Florida, I escaped the sun while on a bike ride to sketch this hedge of palms.

cat feet

Over the course of each moleskine sketchbook, I create a compilation of themed sketches. These are a few quick drawings of my cat Clarence's feet. Thank you for your patience, Clarence. Now it's on to small moleskine number eleven.

sketching stools

A couple of months ago I bought two of these wooden stools at a community yard sale. I keep them in my truck for on-location sketching. The original owner is a man from Denmark who bought these at a Dude Ranch in Montana. Dimensions; 18" x 14" x 3".

the tire store

In the waiting room of the local tire store is a horse saddle on a saw horse. While watching my money turn into a round rubber tube, I wondered if it's cheaper to ride a horse.

beverages

The final page of moleskine #7 for 2008. This page progresses throughout the life of this sketchbook. The art includes snippets from coffeeshops, restaraunts, an outdoor market, a truckstop, and other places where there is nothing to do but sit quietly. We all know how difficult it is to be quiet and patient when we're a bundle of nervous energy... this is a manifestation of those times. Like a little kid, I am thankful for pencil and paper at these times.

tree studies

On the left is a giant, majestic bald cypress tree along the banks of a creek. The gap is large enough to stand in.

On the right is a dead, twisted cedar. They have a wild, rugged character about them. In the heat of the summer, and after a rain, they have a great smell. Almost like incense.

spin cycle

Laundry day. One of those chores you gotta do.

bubbles and bees

This was a "something to do while on the phone" sketch. After drawing the clamshell, I remembered the old Flinstones cartoon...Fred and Barney's "electric" shavers were clam shells with bees in them. Could multiple bee stings shock the hair folicles, therefore eliminating the morning shadow? Maybe the stubble just disappeared in the swelling. Who could know the logic behind this ritual???

The Flinstones was one of my favorite shows as a kid.

Sketchbooks Past

This is a sample of sketches I've done since 1993. Starting from top left: Barcelona; Toronto skyline; motel in Tucamcari, New Mexico; Gramma's cherry pie; black & white world; Bermuda sunset; Las Vegas slots; St. Louis Arch, Williamsburg, Va horses, Honolulu rainbow, Puerto Rico beach.

Sketchbooks Past

I've been through many sketchbooks through the years. Some people have commented on Moleskine sketchbooks being a trendy fad. In my experience, Moleskine stands at the top for quality and durability, both in paper and craftsmanship. This trend will most likely stay with me for a long time.