Catch up time

Busy, busy, busy. Our granddaughter had her spring break following Easter, so we were involved in a sleepover and a natural history museum visit during the week. I spent most of this past week sorting files on my hard drives, which doesn't leave a lot of discretionary time. Or leisure, either, for that matter. Today I did some Web site updating, so I'm almost caught up. Just in time to prepare for a demo at the National Art Materials Trade Association trade show, followed by a workshop in Cazenovia, New York. Other pots are beginning to boil, too, so it looks like a busy summer coming up.

The other day I came across an announcement from the Society of Canadian Artists regarding the artist who ran afoul of the American Watercolor Society last year. Guess what! The Canadian society revoked the artist's awards from 2006 and 2007 and have rescinded her membership. Here's their statement:
http://www.societyofcanadianartists.com/exhibitions/Statement0607.asp

A friend recently told me that the signatures on all her watercolor paintings have disappeared over the years. She had used ballpoint pens to sign. I knew that the ink wasn't permanent. I was shocked she didn't. I keep trying to get my students to sign with brush and watercolor. They counter that the pens are labeled "Permanent." Hello? That means they won't wash out. "Lightfast" means they won't fade. So far, the best pens I know are advertised as "light resistant." That isn't quite the same thing. Does anyone out there know of a lightfast pen?

Fun weekend, winding down

The weekend wasn't what I had planned, but was even more fun. Jenna came over Friday afternoon for her sleepover and in the morning we baked sugar cookies from scratch. She was involved in the process from breaking the eggs to frosting the cut-out hearts we made. It took forever, but she was having a good time and we didn't have anything else we needed to do. The rest of the family came over later to pick her up and Daniel sported a new haircut. After they all left, I continued to play with Facebook. I won't be spending so much time there now that I have figured out how it works. It has really been great to hear from students and friends I haven't been in touch with for many years. Earlier in the week I worked on a self-portrait drawing, but I haven't had time to put any paint on it or on the one I started of Jenna. Maybe this coming week. Can't wait to see what my class has done with their self portraits this week.

Treasures from the past

We've lived in this house for 40 years now. Before we moved in, we had cupboards built at the back of the garage for storage. In one of those cupboards we stored a footlocker packed with costumes my mother made for "Pride and Prejudice," my junior-class play in high school. There were also some Halloween costumes I'd made for our kids and even a couple of pieces handed down from my mother, like the gym bloomers she wore to play basketball in the early 1900s.

They went undisturbed for years. Each time we cleaned the garage, we moved the trunk out, swept behind it, and pushed it back into the storage area. About three years ago, my curiosity got the best of me and I opened the trunk. Everything in it looked in fantastic condition, but it all smelled so strongly of mildew I could hardly stand it. I put everything in a huge plastic lawn bag, knotted it, and put it back in the cupboard, vowing to learn how to get the mildew out. Of course, I totally forgot all about it. But when we cleaned the garage last weekend, I opened the bag and sorted through the costumes. I was astonished that the mildew smell was nearly gone, since the bag had a couple of holes in it and fresh air had filtered through. Its a lovely collection of dress-up clothes for my granddaughter. I pulled out several pieces and soaked them in oxygen bleach, then washed in hot water. They look (and smell) good!

There's a 65-year-old Little Bo Peep costume my mother made for me, complete with petticoats and bloomers. There's a clown suit I made for our oldest. I think the other two boys wore it as well when they were two or three years old. A skirt and bodice my daughter wore for a folk-dancing program at elementary school. What fun! I'll know better after I iron them what condition the fabric is in after all these years. The thread in the clown suit has nearly disintegrated, so it needs to be completely sewn up, but that won't be hard to do. I suspect that the three boys each added a new rip in the seams when they wore it over and over.

The gowns for Pride and Prejudice may not fare as well. They would be more than years old. Fabrics weren't wash-and-wear. There are two taffetas, a satin, a dotted-swiss and a gingham full-length gowns. Mother altered two of them for me to wear as prom dresses, events I attended with my one-and-only boyfriend and husband. Very amusing to see the modest lace inserts she sewed into the top of the strapless gowns. No cleavage permitted in those days. I hope I can salvage one or two of them for Jenna to play with.

If this works, maybe I can restore my wedding gown. My beautiful dress has had a sad history and is bundled in a heap in the attic.

Stepping off the pincushion

Might as well, since I learned yesterday that the books-in-house date for Confident Color has been moved to September 18, three weeks later than previously announced. Maybe that's a good thing, giving me more time to do some publicity. I've fallen behind on everything because of workshops and family obligations.

The workshop at Peninsula Art School in Door County, Wisconsin, was great. What a fabulous facility and beautiful area. I seldom have an opportunity to see much of an area when I'm teaching, but I did manage to drive up the west coast of the peninsula and see some of the beautiful little towns, beaches and marinas. I've heard there are a lot of lighthouses there, but I never saw one. The art school is worth investigating, as they have a well rounded program, including painting, drawing, metal work, classes, workshops, lectures and much more. My workshop was a three-day crash course in color and design, working with collage and monotype techniques. The students worked hard and it looked like they were enjoying themselves.

My regular baby-sitting duties have ended and my days have already filled with other activities. I will so miss the our baby boy's sloppy hugs, wobbly walking around the furniture and wild rides across the kitchen floor in his walker. He'll be a year old on Saturday and I don't imagine he'll admire his birthday cake with restraint once he has tasted chocolate.

I'm going over to McCallister's Art Store for the last time today before they close. I've been putting it off because it makes me sad. I feel bad for the owners and for the artist patrons who have stuck with them for so many years.

Shannon Family Reunion

Last week was a riot, running up to our family reunion at our daughter's farm in Wilmington, Ohio. Thirty-six descendants and in-laws of my parents came from Boston, California, Colorado and Ohio to honor their memory. My daughter did most of it and she certainly did a good job. We started Friday evening with a potluck at the farm and after dinner watched a DVD that my nephew, who is in the film industry in California, had put together from old family movies dating back to the early 1940s through the last reunion in 2001. That was fun to see the families of my two sisters and me as our families were growing up. We got together on holidays when our parents were living and had a great time. On Saturday we all went to Fort Ancient State Park, a mound-builders' fort that has picnic facilities. After a picnic, the young people went canoeing on the Little Miami River and the "elders" returned to the air-conditioned house ostensibly to baby-sit our grandson. We had a grand time reminiscing when we weren't napping. Pizza was delivered for dinner on the patio. I should mention the weather, which was perfect--sunny and nice, although hot and humid, as you might expect in late July in Ohio. Sunday morning everyone assembled at my house in Dayton for donuts and coffee. We took group pictures and then set off on a trip down memory lane that my daughter had planned. First, we visited the house where my mother, her sister and brother were born between 1896 and 1904. It's a restaurant in the historic district now. We also drove by the house where my parents met and the church where they were married. We saw the house where all three of us were born and another where we grew up and lived for 18 years. The final lap on the trip was to the cemetery where our grandparents, parents and some cousins are buried on the same plot since 1938. It was quite a journey and a wonderful weekend. The oldest of our group is my sister at 78, the youngest is our grandson at 10 months.

Busy June, a worry, and good news

I was looking forward to a break after the B.C. workshop, with nothing scheduled until July 21. An opportunity to apply for a grant came up, so I decided to give it a try. The deadline was June 16. Needless to say, it was a push to meet the deadline, but I made it. While working on the proposal I had a questionable mammogram, which led to a needle biopsy. That wasn't my idea of a good time, but turned out to be negative, thank goodness. I also had my final eye check, after two cataract surgeries this year, and came out 20/20 in both eyes. Still need driving glasses, though, because of astigmatism. No big deal. It's wonderful to have such clear vision now, especially for color. Our granddaughter 5 1/2 had her first dance recital June 16. That wasn't too cute--a chorus line singing and dancing to "Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Bikini" with little outfits (not bikinis!), sun hats and sunglasses. I'm still baby-sitting our 10-month-old grandson, whose a sweetheart and a buster at the same time. He's napping as I write this. I'll write more later. Hope to get back on track now. My birthday was this week. I've hit the 3/4 century mark. How did I get so old? (I know, a year at a time). My brain seems to think it isn't 50 yet. My body has other ideas. Even so, I'm working out at Curves and signed up for a weight-loss program that has knocked off 6 pounds so far. Whatever works.

Blessings

I think I've written three weeks of blogs today. The brightest lights in the entire picture are Jenna and Daniel. In this picture of Jenna she's wearing her "dress-up dress" that I bought for $1.50 at Goodwill when she was about three. It's a size 14-teen chiffon party dress and we had to pin it up to keep it from dragging on the floor and tripping her. Now it's above her ankles but it still fits over her clothes. As you can see, she doesn't quite fit into the purple pumps yet. She's wearing one of my hats, as she cuts and pastes at her little art center at Grammy's house.

Daniel prefers wrestling with Pooh to posing for his birthday photo. He's eight-months old in this one. It was all I could do to keep him from leaping off the couch while I set up the camera. I'm discovering with Daniel that there's a little athleticism left in this old girl. I have to sprint across the room to keep up with him, crawl around the furniture, lift him like a twenty-pound free-weight. He's such a happy baby and loves to make me laugh with his juicy raspberries.

The Little Artist strikes again

Jenna slept over a couple of weeks ago and I'm just getting around to posting the tempera painting she did while she was here. I thrills me to watch her paint. She doesn't hesitate--just gets right to it. She began with the yellow circle near the top and surrounded it with red dots to make a flower. A long purple stem came next, with the green leaves, which she mixed by putting the yellow down and stirring blue into it. Next, she painted the rainbow around the flower. She realized it was getting a little muddy, so she moved to the lower part and put in some colorful shapes. I showed her how to make marks with a tongue depressor and she enjoyed playing with that to decorate the shapes. It doesn't take her very long and she is definite about when the painting is finished. What's more, when she comes to visit, she seems surprised to see her paintings and likes what she has done. So do I!

The gift of old age

Yesterday afternoon I attended the 90th birthday party of my son-in-law's grandmother, Great-grandma to Jenna and Daniel. The party was held in a church social room and attended by more than fifty family members of all ages. A huge spread of delicious food was carried in by the guests, a great family tradition, the potluck. Several of the guests had been married or confirmed at the church in years past.

Lola, the guest of honor, sat at the head of the tables, which were arranged in a U-shape. She was stunning in her royal blue satin party dress and wore an equally stunning smile throughout the day. Before the cutting of the cake, Lola was assisted in walking from her seat to the other end of the room. She has had several health problems since I last saw her, and I was pleased to notice how strong she appeared in rising to the occasion.

Lola spoke in a strong voice with an obviously clear mind. The essence of her words: The most important thing in life is family. She thanked those who had made the wonderful party, her daughters and sons, and those who came to celebrate with them. She was grateful for her long life and her wonderful family.

I first met Lola (when she was in her late 60s) at our daughter's wedding, where she taught my son to boot-scoot and spent most of the evening on the dance floor. She went out dancing several nights a week for Western line-dancing and enjoyed many other activities, as well. I remember thinking of the words of George Bernard Shaw:
We do not stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing. Play on, Lola.