I’m not sure, but I believe the last time I posted was sometime in the fall of 2018. I started working at an accounting firm in spring of 2014 and from then on I was busy. It had been so long since I had worked outside the house, it took me a while to get the hang of it. I never did like leaving the house to GO to work, but I did it. I mostly did payroll and found that every three months there was a busy time that included overtime, and planning very little outside of work for at least half that month. Then, of course, there was year-end and quarter 4 that would regularly take ALL of January. I was blessed to have this job and the long hours every few months was no hardship. There was always a light at the end of the tunnel, and by the time I got through the craziness of January, days were getting longer. I found a lot of joy in that, on one drive home, each season. That was the light – something to look forward to each January.

As part of working this job, I met those who have become lifelong friends. With them, I travel, camp, explore, dine, and have such fun conversations. These precious friends of mine enrich each day of my life. They have taught me to take time (starting with them), to be a better person (because they are such good and kind people), and to better enjoy life and the simplest parts of it.

My father passed away in November of 2019. He was probably the nicest, kindest person I ever knew. There was always a place at his table for any of our friends (I have two brothers), he took people into his house who made it their home – and then did him wrong on their way out. But I don’t think he would have done anything differently. I think I was angrier and less forgiving than he. It was who he was. With my father, I knew I was loved, and he saw some of my worst. There is something about family, even if we’re not close, that gives us some sense of belonging. The people who raised us and who were raised with us, know us in a way that nobody else does.

The busy-ness involved with taking care of Dad, his estate, his house, and all that comes with the passing of someone you love, kept me very busy for some time. I miss him so much. There are still days I think of things I’d like to ask him, but he is no longer available to me for that purpose. I’m glad I listened as much as I did; I wish I had listened more carefully. My life would have been so much different (and less) except for him.

Of course, then there was COVID. I’m so glad (if that’s the correct way to express myself), Dad was sick and passed before the advent of COVID lock downs. I don’t think I would have allowed my Dad to die alone, but one never knows one’s strength until challenged, and luckily, I didn’t have to face that challenge. More to the point, he would have been appalled at how we (collectively) reacted to this thing, loosed on us, we knew nothing about. We older folks were less afraid than the youngsters. Perhaps it’s because we’ve been around awhile and are looking at our lives more in the rear-view mirror than the windshield. What was frightening to us was the number of ways our governments ignored rights and wielded their authoritarian sticks against its citizens. We had never seen anything like it. While things changed substantially around me, in more ways than was recommended, my life did not change. I had “dinner” every Sunday and my granddaughter and a friend would sit on the balcony, enjoy the view and quiet, and talk. The local Mexican eatery allowed for take-out, including my beloved margaritas, and if I didn’t cook our meal, we’d order from them. Anyway, we’re all going to get it. I got COVID in January 2021 and stayed home and worked when I could. (Remember, January is the busiest time in the payroll world.) I ran a fever for ten days! That’s when I started gobbling up vitamins. I got COVID again in June of 2022 – or maybe it was July. Seems like both times I had COVID it was during a busy time at work. Anyway, my second bout with COVID in 2022 lasted only a few days.

I’m happy to announce, I have retired! I have a rental and am learning how to manage that. For six(ish) months I dealt with the construction of that. And, finalizing that process was busy and expensive, but again, I have a lifelong friend who has taken it upon herself to guide me and help me. I am forever thankful for her and all she has done.

So, directly after retiring, I had MORE to do, but it is done and I’m now able to relax a bit. I am now taking the time to walk most days and that feels so good. It’s starting to warm up making it a lot nicer. I missed that part of my life after going back to an office for work the last (almost) eight years. I’m now finally starting to organize my life, since it seems I think I don’t HAVE to remember ANYTHING, and so I remember very few of the things I should. I’ve started to draw again and do tutorials. Most importantly, I have begun to read the Bible and have learned so much about our history as a people, about how flawed we are, and about God’s grace. I have a long way to go. I am, every day, listening to Fr Mike Schmitz read the (Catholic) Bible (The Bible in a Year podcast) https://tinyurl.com/4n2z7fme. Afterward, he lends some insight into each daily reading. It’s been enlightening. I also (twice) listened to the audio book, The Rock, The Road, and the Rabbi by Kathie Lee Gifford and Rabbi Jason Sobel. I wish I’d had this information years ago. My understanding of the Bible was naive and very limited, although I have always had an innate faith in the Lord. I’m not a very good Christian, even now. Anyway, I’ve come to believe the Bible shouldn’t be taught or studied without the Hebrew influence of the Old Testament. So many translations of old Hebrew to Greek and then to English lost meaning. All that is lost in translation, is so important for understanding. It also makes the stories richer with meaning.

You can listen to and/or watch Rabbi Jason Sobel on YouTube. If you’re interested in such things, you’ll find him interesting. Here’s one of my favorites:

Now, I hope to post more often. I’m still taking pictures, and I am once again making art. I have lots of pictures I haven’t posted, and some art I will add to this blog. I’m in a good place – and life is good.

Thank you for stopping in. I hope things are going well for you. God bless you and yours.

“Fog is my weakness, and every time there is low fog, I am out and about with my camera.“ —Om Malik

A few short weeks ago this same picture was full of rich blues and browns and colorful fall leaves covering the surrounding trees. I love weather — any kind. We have so many days of sunshine here in the Grand Valley of Western Colorado, that the clouds, the rain, the snow, and anything that breaks up the monotony, is welcome. (One website says 245 sunny days, another says 240.) Don’t get me wrong, I love the relatively temperate climate here, but there’s no drama in that. I think it’s a nice break when a storm pushes through. And, of course, I have a birds eye view.

“We don’t make mistakes, just happy little accidents.” –Bob Ross

I recently discovered alcohol inks. I’ve seen some beautiful art made with this medium, too. I don’t think it’s easy to work with, although in the abstract, I’ve gotten some really pretty pieces.

For those of you not familiar with alcohol inks, they’re basically alcohol based inks — they respond to alcohol in somewhat the same manner water colors respond to water. It IS different from watercolors. For instance, if you drop alcohol into a painting, the color on the surface will bloom — as in the picture below. The spots on the tree are created by dabbing alcohol on the inked surface. You can also use alcohol pens, like Copic pens or even Sharpies. In fact, you can use Copic ink refills as the ink. What I use are Jacquard Piñata inks and Tim Holtz Ranger inks, a painting tool filled with alcohol, a Copic colorless blender, and paintbrushes. These inks work best on non-porous surfaces, like tiles, acetate (Dura-Lar), or Yupo. I have also used photographic paper. I’ve seen tutorials where foil was used that gave the art a stained-glass type appearance.

This is my latest and it’s one I think I will frame, eventually. This is Tim Holtz Ranger inks on Yupo, using a paintbrush to spread the ink, a smaller paintbrush to dab alcohol on the tree for leaves, and the Copic colorless blender pen for the trunk and branches and the vegetation at the bottom.

I went to a class at Seasons to Follow in Downtown Grand Junction, where I was shown how to use canned air to make a flower on a 4 x 4 tile. I though those turned out kind of interesting, but they don’t look a lot like what I was being shown. I have trouble controlling the air. I compensated for my ineptitude by making details in the middle of the white flower/black tile, and putting dots and lines all around the one on the white tile.

Another tile I did was based on a YouTube tutorial by Myriam’s Nature (Miriam with a y). She is a lot of fun and really creative. I followed along as best I could. I am not unhappy with the result. I wiped that tile clean several times until I finally ended up with something I liked. That’s another cool thing about these inks—you can thin and wipe and pour until you have something you like.

I tried a couple other of Myriam’s tutorials, but I have a hard time emulating what she does. I guess it’s all in the interpretation and I end up liking all of them.

The following are my effort to make something I like. I have also followed another artist, predominantly on Instagram, who mixes and mixes and mixes until she finally has something that I think is so beautiful. They’re more like the pink and gold one below, but the color mixes are so interesting, and she uses alcohol spots to add interest. Her Instagram name is manifest.jess. Check out her art; it’s beautiful!

For the one below, I may eventually use a black marker to make flower details. This reminds me of fabric my grandmother might have had.

As difficult as this medium is to wrangle for traditional and representative art, it can be done and I have seen some beautiful pieces on Pinterest. If all I ever do is these hodge-podge pieces, I’ll be happy. They’re very colorful. I would also like to do some landscape art with this, but it will take a lot more practice.

If I ever want to add or subtract to any of these pieces, I can always use more ink, or I can use 91% Isopropyl alcohol to remove ink, and I can do that weeks after—probably even years.

I’ve had a lot of fun with this. I guess that’s the point, isn’t it?

“I have long thought that anyone who does not regularly—or ever—gaze up and see the wonder and glory of a dark night sky filled with countless stars loses a sense of their fundamental connectedness to the universe.” —Brian Greene

I took these pictures 11/8/18 on the Colorado National Monument. It was a class put on by the Monument and taught by Christopher K. Eaton. We hiked down a little way to get a good spot to photograph and then he helped us, with our different cameras, to take these night pictures. I had a blast and learned a lot. My feet got really cold, though. I did wear plenty of clothes and I had hand warmers, but my feet were what finally did me in. I can’t wait to do this again. I hope I can find someone with the same interest; I really don’t want to be out there alone at night. I’m not as brave (or foolhardy) as I once was.

It was a beautiful and relaxing afternoon at the newest winery in Palisade, Colorado, Restoration Vineyards. They put on a party that included wine, Double B BBQ serving up yummy food, music by Jared Shaw and Erika Beland and Crimson Finch, stunning views, and a sunny and warm fall day. It was all so relaxing surrounded by my sweet, long-time friends. The icing was enjoying the success and party spirit of my newest friends, Gary and Linda Brauns, the energetic and imaginative owners of Restoration Vineyards. They know how to put on a party!

This venue is surrounded by vineyards and cherry and peach orchards with a view of Mount Garfield that is quite different from mine. I had lots of photo subject matter.