Vicki Lane's Blog, page 30

Still Blooming

 

Judy's House

                                                                        

I was delighted to have this picture pop up on Facebook--an old photo of Judy Shelton's cabin. I'd never seen a picture but it was much as I'd imagined--a two story log cabin. (I suspect that the sagging bit on the right was a later addition.)
 That cabin was the setting for several important scenes in my historical novel And the Crows Took Their Eyes. 
Nothing but the chimney remains of the place where the thirteen victims of the Shelton Laurel Massacre were held the night before their execution. Nothing but memories and ghosts.

Remember to Breathe

                                                                                     

                                                                                

                                                                                  
We are being drowned in outrageous actions and proposals, as well as a relentless flood of misinformation. 
Don't let it get the better of you. 

Learning Curve

                                                                                     

Between the continuing cold weather and the ongoing bad news issuing from DC, I'm spending large amounts of time working on watercolors and trying to move beyond my comfort zone (which is painting pictures of flowers--not from life but from...pictures of flowers.

While I draw or paint, I've found that listening to audio books really helps me loosen up and not worry about getting things just so. Currently listening to an excellent reading of Michael Chabon's The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay.

Here I'm working from pictures on my cell phone. The first is the early morning view from behind our house--taken when I was walking Jenny.  

Otter in her tie-dye hoodie. She makes me think of a chubby little girl in a party frock. I was delighted to feel that I'd come close to an actual likeness.
Unlike this 'portrait' of a late neighbor (based on a fuzzy old photo grabbed from the internet.) I'm still futzing with it but don't have a lot of hope. I wonder if my inability to produce a recognizable person is linked to the fact that I often have trouble recognizing people if they are in an unexpected place or, heaven help us, have changed their hairstyle, shaved a beard, or added glasses.
I've attempted Josie with terrible results and have a half-completed sketch of her dolls Margo and Dolly in which there are traces of Margo, but Dolly seems to have been inhabited by a demon.
Ah, well, back to the drawing board.
                                                                                    

 

Celestial Image?

Space debris seen from the port hole of a spaceship?


                              Alas, only potato chip debris.
                                                                                     

Meltdown

FOTUS, the toddler in the Oval Office is acting out beyond belief. Actually, it's a mix of toddler, wannabe dictator, and senile oldster. But it's going unchecked and will have lasting evil consequences for our country and the world.


Fire, defund, rename, withdraw, redraw . . .give that toddler a sharpie and watch him destroy even things that benefit those who voted for him. 
Meanwhile, the Republican in Congress support his every whim and attempt to sane-wash his every crazy pronouncement.

Oh, for some Republican congresspersons with only half the balls of  Murkowski and Collins! They could have done more on other occasions, but at least they voted against confirming the demonstrably unstable Hegseth.
 

Vicki Paints (but, unlike Josie, has no dreams of stardom)

 

A Hero for These Times

                                                                              

The brightest spot in the past few dark days has been watching the video of Bishop Mariann Budde at the National Cathedral speaking truth to power and watching power and his family and cronies squirm.
She wasn't 'gracious,' whined the target of her entreaty for mercy to immigrants and trans people.
I reckon those money lenders Jesus drove out of the temple said the same about him.
FOTUS also accused the bishop of bringing politics into the occasion. 
This from a man hawking autographed Bibles to his cult.
If I were to embrace any religion, Bishop Budde's brand would be it.

Josie Paints (but she really wants to play the guitar and sing)

We have had LOTS of snow days and Tuesday was another one. It was also a remote learning day, and I was supposed to do six pages in my workbook, but I did them already. 
Meema was painting and she gave me a new paintbox to use. There are 100 different colors and some are VERY bright.,

First I did a tiara.

It's fun to have so many colors. (Pink is still my favorite.)

Then I did a rainbow. The clouds came out really good. Grumpy and Meema both said so.                                                        



This is my best picture. It is about what I want to do. It says WHEN I GROW UP AFTER HARD WORK I GRADUATE FROM MUSIC SCHOOL. I SING IN A BIG CONCERT. I AM A STAR.




 

Polar Vortex

Cold, cold, cold! I spent Monday with an afghan over my legs, a hot drink at my side-- listening to Persuasion and drawing and painting.

The power is still on; the water still running.

 

A kind of appropriate beginning to the next four years.

Circle the wagons; prepare your blanket forts. It's going to be rocky.