In the summer of 1962, my mother flew us to meet our French family. We didn’t speak the language at home and so struggled to relate to these strange cousins who looked at us like we were just plain dumb. But Luke came up with the best ice breaker, the chicken dance replete with the bluck bluucck bluccck sound. Before long my cousin Veronique was trying it out. Great laughter ensued. This was one language we could all speak.
“When you miss me, look at the moon Giglamesh, and I know that wherever I go I will be looking as well.”
To get to the O’Connell ranch, Jonah had to walk through the ancient forest. For breakfast, he feasted on the mushrooms and fresh eggs but left this special egg alone. It was speckled and quite rare. He wondered about the mother bird. Would she be back before it hatched?
As he watched the sunrise one last time, Jonah wondered about his ancestors. How long before they would be forgotten? He could almost hear the children running across the field chasing rabbits and searching for eggs. It was long ago and he was a child of the old ways. But today he would start on a journey into town and begin anew at the O’Connell ranch. Of course he didn’t know what lay in his future. All he knew was that he had to leave this sacred place.
Blow hard and spray! It is that easy! Tomorrow Hilda leaves the cove to practice her tail spinning deep dives!
My spinach is growing well this year. No doubt they will be harvested and eaten in one meal. Perhaps I'll make spinach gnocchi’s or a nice spinach gratin. I have watched them grow for 40 days and will take 40 minutes to harvest and cook them. Finally, I will eat them in 4 minutes.
Young Woman with a Pitcher 1662 by Vermeer
I liked Vermeer so much that I copied the style to make a post card.
Portrait of Gerard de Lairesse by Rembrandt. 1665
This sitter was a painter in his own right and painted the tableau below. A drastically different style from Rembrandt. I can't help but wonder if Lairesse gravitated to the more fantastical, ideal style because of his own infirmity. He suffered from congenial syphillis which cause him to later go blind. 
Apollo and Aurora 1671 by Gerard de Lairesse
This was taken out of storage from the MET to contrasts the two artists style.
I'm still experiencing Trip Lag. It's been three days since my return but my heart and soul will remain in New York for a little while longer. It's an emotional kind of lag.
New York is home and I feel like an expat out in the Northwest. I imagine I could move back and my entire adult life would feel like a very long trip.
My first day I traveled to the Central Park Zoo with Colette and Eamon. They have been animal lovers from the beginning. We used to head to the Seattle Zoo on a regular basis.
Having lived in the city for two years now, they have become street savvy, which made it easier on me. They know their address, how to hail a cab and how to walk home as well.
The aviary.
Playing sink or float.
Here we are in the park playing around like we were in the country side.
And here they are at 5am headed for London and Paris with their parents.
The first thing I did on my own was to head to the Metropolitan Museum of Art and meet up with my old high school friend Fern Estrow. The day was delightful, free spirited and thrilling. I returned to the MET three more time and still didn't have my fill. Not even close.
The second day I went to visit my BFF from High School up in Peekskill, Donna Ellrodt Dahl. She came out a little fuzzy but at our age, this can be a good thing.
Before I knew it, Alex arrived and we rediscovered the joys of riding around in the subway..
I have to say, it was actually fun. It kept us feeling young and remembering our teen years.
Here I am with Claudia Keenan. She has a wealth of knowledge on New York History. Alex and I so enjoyed a of morning brew with her at Bryant Park.
No trip can be complete with out this iconic scene from Central Park.
At the Cloisters. This stone work surrounding the door way was found in the 1950's abandoned in a park in France.
The Cloisters, a medieval garden of medicinal plants.
An Espalier
This time Mary is the sleeping baby held by her mother St. Anne. A curious piece.
And now I am back at the MET. The Madonna and Baby scenes fascinate me.
Meanwhile, Colette took Paris by Storm
And in London, the grandkids discovered the Rosetta Stone. How cool is that?
Meanwhile I got a licking from the beloved Taz.
Shopping with Colette and Emily in Brooklyn.
The Post Bugle
While I study Monet's color palette, II collage and fall in-love with serendipity.
Thank-you # Robyn Mclendon for the great lesson
Although he had tried for long while, Oliver was certain he would never see his father again. Traveling where his heart led, he found himself on the foothills of a foreign land. It was strange yet familiar this spring and he had grown confident in his ability to dart in and out of the pastoral land.
My painting was inspired by this art work of St Hubert who was Bishop of Liege in 716 AD who is said to have seen Christ on the antlers of a Stag. Painter is unknown but it was painted around 1485 AD on a left panel.
Going down the road trying to loosen my soul
a world of colors on my mind
Green says he will own me
Red says he will stone me
Blue says he's a friend of mine
Take it easy, Take it easy
Don't let the sound of your own wheels drive you crazy.
Months pass and spring turned to summer. The corn grew in the North field and was almost ready for harvest. One day Gus wandered into the hilly West field where the long-abandoned family Barn lay about. And right before his very eyes, he saw a field of wild sunflowers. It looked as if someone just scattered the seeds one way and then the other with no order whatsoever. But to Gus it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. He had a feeling Jack must have been behind this and he was glad.
Jack sees that the sack of sunflower seeds has remained untouched. He now knows for sure that Gus is sowing corn seed on in the North field. Disappointed, his heart falls.
But after taking a deep breath, he grabs the sack and heads outside.
In the morning, Gus’s friend Todd calls from the Tucson Tamale Company to check and make sure Gus still plans to plant the North Field with corn. Todd depends upon the corn for the Masa harina used to make his world famous Tamales. They've been friends a long time. So not wanting to let him down, Gus commits to one more year of corn. While sowing the corn in his field, however, he still dreams of sunflowers.
Jeanne wasn’t much of a cook, but she did love to paint. After dinner Gus walked into her old art room and noticed her last painting on the easel. It was a portrait of Jeanne's French mother. Dang, she looked a lot like Jeanne. Gus felt bad that he didn’t encourage her to do more art.
As Gus Leaves the hearth he notices Jeanne’s muddy workboots by the back door. He can’t stand to look at them nor can he bare picking them up. So there they sit.
