My first hurricane season here in Florida and it is surely starting with a bang, pop, and boom! Irma is making her way north and promises to be quite a show off in terms of power. It's pretty eery how sunny and calm everything is right now, knowing that chaos is on its way. Everyone here is busy prepping with groceries, gas, and water. I've done my part. Bags are packed and I'm ready to leave if need be. However, with the mass exodus from the south, leaving now is practically futile. Congestion and immobility on the highways out of the state are a huge deterrent. A friend just told me that people coming north have crawled along for 90 minutes on the highway to only go 7 miles. The worst thing we could do is get out there, run out of gas, and then be a sitting duck for 180 mph winds to come at us.

Fridge is stocked, to some degree. Finding the balance between ample food that won't perish should the power be lost for a long time and hoarding way more than you and 10 neighbors might need for several weeks seems to be a fine line. I have a mix of fresh food that has staying power, like spinach and romaine, fruits, vegetables, as well as things that can be cooked on a grill or even open flames.

Water is bottled and frozen and stuffed into the freezer. The less air space, the longer it will stay cold when/if the power goes out.

My dogs are only affected as far as seeing their mom pack. Piper, as always, runs to her mobile carrying bag, ready for the next adventure. Cooper just wants to make sure I close no door between him and me. I wish I could make them understand that I would never leave them behind. I just love on them a little more for reassurance. Right or wrong, that makes us all feel better.

I know one thing, we are really lucky to be able to prepare, be warned, take precautions, and take extreme measures if necessary. I am so full of gratitude for all who have and continue to check on me. <3 nbsp="" p="">
Meanwhile, here are some pictures I took the last couple days. That middle picture, the selfie, was taken first thing in the morning while walking the dogs. About as unglamorous as one can get.

A casual stroll in Paris

As we headed out for our third morning in Paris, having just had our classic Parisian breakfast of Café au Lait and croissant at Le Metro Café, we decided to begin our adventure by exploring the neighborhood we were staying in. Walking past the almost iconic patisseries, boulangeries, boucheries, and fromageries in the Montparnasse neighborhood with no particular destination in mind, I glanced down a narrow street, barely bigger than an alley. I was met with a beautiful smattering of green lush plants and vines that were trailing from one side to the other across cables and power lines. We meandered down this Rue, my companion and I, both appreciating the natural beauty it offered on that sunny but crisp fall day. What a thing of wonder to have such a beautiful garden in the midst of this busy city. An Eden amongst the cobblestones. There, I happened upon a curbside flower garden with a beautiful fuchsia plant, commonly known as dancing ladies.This was one of my favorite flowers growing up and I remember my mother telling me about it as a child. My imagination ran with images of swirling ball gowns dancing to Mozart and Chopin. It was not a native or perennial in our hometown of St. Louis and so we did not have them at our house though I always wanted them. Although this French version looked slightly different, it's quite the beauty nonetheless. 

I found out later that this Rue des Thermopyles is quite well known in Paris. As it was not very crowded when we were there, I felt that we had just "discovered" a hidden gem while on our casual stroll. The most beautiful things happen when you just poke around. 

The snapshot below is of

my latest work and is one of the most detailed paintings I have attempted thus far. I hope you enjoy it.

Title: Fuschia on Rue des Thermopyles ©

Prismacolor Premier Pencil on blue Mi-Tientes paper

Brain fog strikes again

Seems I wrote a post back in December and then never published it. Silly forgetful brain.

These days, I'm all about being compassionate with myself. And honest. That is the hard one isn't it friends? To really be honest, not only with yourself, but, with others especially. To have that accountability is really humbling and terrifying. In contemplating the possibility of having roomate(s) in the future, I have to be super honest about how much time I spend not being productive. Honestly, it goes way beyond self-care. It is downright avoidant and I've been doing it in one form or another for so long, it seems nearly impossible to shed all of the escapist and avoidant behaviors. Still, I'm determined. I will conquer these character defects and bad habits so that I can be the best me and live the life I dream and envision. That is my goal. The rest is only details. 

Right now, I'm working on a painting that is probably the most detailed and involved thing I've done to date. It is taking me a long time but I'm determined to finish, and make it something I'm proud of. Well, I'm already proud of it. I'm so excited about getting it completed and share it with you all. 

Here's the last painting I did. I really love the dynamic feel it has. It is still hanging on my studio wall. I left it there to contemplate if it was finished. I had gotten hyper-focused on one area that I struggled with. Since then, I grin every time I get even a glance at it. I don't even notice the spot that once captured all my attention. It is the first, hopefully of many, of Forida subject matter that I've done since moving here in January. It is a common hedge used in many commercial landscapes here. The flowers in real life are only about a centimeter or so. Barely noticeable as you are walking by. Of course, I'm the nerd that likes to get my camera (my phone) right up in the bushes/grass/at sidewalk level/whatever it takes to get a good image of the thing that catches my eye.

Walking in Beauty

What an incredible year it has been. Lots of travel, lots of moving, a TON of beauty, and, of course, some sadness too. We have lost a lot of incredible artists this year, many unexpectedly. That's what happens when we get old, no? It's good to honor those feeling of grief and then we can more easily release that sadness and get back to the beauty of life that is available to us all.

Today, I drove around Phoenix neighborhoods with no particular direction in mind when I set out. Basically, I let The Force guide my directions. Instinctively though, I found a wildlife rehabilitation area that made for a nice walk with my dogs. I continued on and found some neighborhoods and areas that I really liked. Some I could maybe imagine living in. Just putting those feelers out there in the Universe. Can't say I'm in love with Phoenix in general, but the surrounding mountains and desert scapes and close proximity to greatness is certainly attractive.

It occurred to me on the way back to my airBNB casita that I have made no effort whatsoever to secure stopping places on my way back to the midwest. Then I wondered, is there a reason for that? Is that my intuition telling me, just hang on, something good is coming.

Last weekend, I went to the White Sands National Monument in New Mexico. It was about 40 miles from where I stayed in Las Cruces and just the drive through the mountains from high desert into the desert was enough to light my fire. I've never driven through such a long incline/decline before and it made me grin from ear to ear. And the White Sands park was just gorgeous. I made sure to be there at sunset and I'm so glad I did. My ankle was not well enough to hike through the dunes as much as I or the dogs would have liked but the good news is, there are picnic areas and places to park and walk all over. I tried to set up and sketch some but realized that I should have planned that way sooner because trying to capture the colors of the mountains at sunset is tricky. It changes minute to minute. It would have been better if I had at least set up and drawn in the mountain shapes first and then tried to put colors in. C'est la vie. Much to think about for future adventures. It also reminds me that I should plan to stop and sketch more often; build up those daily work hours. I'm feeling a little rusty still and only time at the easel/desk/drawing pad will help. In that vein, I'm a bit shy to share any of the things I've sketched recently. But, I will share the Eagle in the Rocks that I had to stop and capture at a rest stop just inside Arizona.

Oh Yeah, and just a few snapshots from White Sands.