Here Comes Winter!

 

It's about time, isn't it?!? I'm not winter's biggest fan, but we're well into the second third of January and... what? No sub-zero temperatures, no snow (or hardly any) as the above picture suggests. We've had a miserable amount of chilly, dreary days. And rain! (In case you hadn't noticed.)

It was just Monday that we had snow and most of it had melted by this morning. Today's promised rain/snow/sleet "event" (with high winds!) was largely a no-show (no-snow?) Yes, we now have a 1/2 inch of white stuff that will disappear later tonight- when the temperature rises to the 50's.

Here's one of Bob's sculptures, enjoying the winter weather. You will notice the grass is actually turning greener. Okay so my mixed feelings run like this: I'm glad for mild weather as I have an opening for my show on Friday and it's supposed to be pretty nice: sunny and in the upper 30's. But another side of me is scared that we're so far along the Climate Change curve that we're at a point of no return. (*1) January should be cold, dark, snowy and yes! Miserable! It shouldn't be masquerading as late February or March.

So... can we (ironically) cross our fingers and toes that nasty weather finally finds us? It's a mixed hope whatever comes our way...

(*1) And don't get me started on the fact that the so-called Dooms Day Clock is closer to midnight than ever before.

Fun with Fungi!

The persistent rain and weird weather may not be to my liking but the mushrooms, toadstools and other forms of life seem to love it! Our yard has become a hot-bed of exotic species. Down by the lilac bed I discovered the above specimen, simply erupting from the lawn.

And this tiny puffball is only a few feet away. Bob eats them. As he hasn't died yet, I guess they're safe to consume but the whole house smells like mushrooms when he cooks them. I'm not a big eater of mushrooms; I will tolerate them on pizza because their sneaker-bottom rubberiness and peculiar flavor is masked by cheese, garlic, spice and tomato sauce. These guys can get huge! We once had one in our yard back in Bridgewater that was the size of a soccer ball, but Bob picks them early as they get brown and nasty pretty quickly. Also slugs and company chew on them.

Ahoy! Yet another variety, this one wriggling up the side of one of our (many) splintered tree stumps. Not certain as to the kind, but it looks like mucous ribbons. That probably edible, too. The poisonous ones are like these:

The other day, they resembled your classic mushroom shape with a clear stem and cap and little gills underneath. The tops started out a vibrant neon yellow. I have watched them explode and slime as the rain kept coming. Some of these suckers are really deadly and even mushroom experts get killed occasionally. Here's a close up:

Nothing appetizing about that! It is pretty amazing that all the above occurred in a small portion of the yard. There's loads more and it looks like fairy land. And then there's this beauty, sneaking through the fence from our neighbors...

Hello! Yes, that's a lusty poison ivy vine. I have already succumbed to several rounds of itchy festering bumps so I'm keeping my distance, no matter how friendly this vine is trying to be.

Hiding in Plain Sight

Periodically, it's good to lay low for a while or just hide out. The picture above is me- ostrich like- covering up and being invisible at work. I am still recovering from the hub bub that was my show in NYC and the constant commuting back and forth... I still need a vacation!
But at the same time, I have loads (and then some) of work to do as I have a show to install at a local college* and another show in Brooklyn in June. I love working towards shows but sometimes I experience a strange longing to have a day or two (or even three or four) where I have "nothing" to do. Gotta recharge the batteries sometime!
And this past week was especially hectic and action packed. It's been crazy busy at work (check out me disappearing above) and in the midst of setting up for another auction, I got called to jury duty. I was excused after a morning's expenditure, but I had to re-arrange my work week to accommodate the court appearance and later in the week, we went to NYC to attend a friend's opening but also just to wander around and consume art.

Look what we found in Chelsea! An expression of someone's First Amendment rights! One of the most refreshing things we saw all day. Bob and I got pretty tired of being handed stupid plastic three D glasses with built in flashlights to view photos and videos; they didn't seem to work too well and after a while it got very gimmicky. But we did see two videos that were engaging: one had wildly dancing artificial shrubbery and a loud repetitive soundtrack (sounds horrible but it was funny and quirky) and the other featured some nice line drawings morphing into other line drawings.
We stopped into Jim Kempner Fine Art- he's a stand up comic turned art dealer who skewers the art world in a show entitled, "The Madness of Art". Jim Kempner was seated right there behind the desk so I took the opportunity to tell him how much we enjoyed his videos. He seemed honestly appreciative and stated that many people don't even know he does a show about art, despite his having done five seasons. (Check it out on YouTube. I think you'll still find it funny even if you're not directly involved as an artist or consumer of art.)
 We also saw a tremendous amount of forgettable stuff but the day was lovely and we had a swell time. We capped it all off with a delightful meal at our favorite Indian restaurant, which has newly decorated itself in a "Happy Birthday" motif. The ceiling gets lower and lower with layer upon layer of strings of Xmas lights; even I had to duck! (Inexplicably,  despite knowing exactly where the restaurant is, we wandered around in a big circle and were almost about to give up and eat something else when we stumbled on it... we must have been very tired and hungry!)
I need to spend a few days in the garden, just cleaning up and getting a grip on what's growing and what's not but it keeps snowing. (Seriously!?!?) Maybe it's good that the weather has been cranky and uncooperative as it's compelled me to stay inside and finish up my work...

*A religious college no less! And I brought along a copy of my book, "God Hates Artists" to the initial meeting for the group organizing the show. I was informed that that particular piece probably wouldn't go over so well...

Constant Consternation

I have been having many-so very many!- WTF moments lately. Just as I think I have ripened into a fairly unflappable semi-adult 61 year old, something else happens to make me exclaim, "What the Fuck"?!!?!?
Take this week for example. The Orange Menace, who masquerades as something called "The President" continues to provide so many WTF episodes that it's causing my head to spin completely around ala Regan in "The Exorcist". Firings, subpoenas... WTF!??!
And the weather? Does this sound like the first day of Spring?!?! We're expecting our fourth (FOURTH!??!?) Nor'easter in three weeks?!?!? WTF!?!?
I experienced a personal WTF moment after I had a flat tire.  Allegedly, you can't replace only one tire on the Subaru; because of all wheel drive, it is strongly "suggested" that you replace all four tires.  Each tire was quoted somewhere around $140. But it occurs to me that the Subaru has 234000 miles on it, leaks oil and smells like gas... Really? Isn't that throwing good money after bad? WTF!?!
I guess I should believe anything that comes my way, but I still keep reeling. That's why I embarked on the above piece, suitably exclaiming WTF!??! I think it expresses what many of us have been feeling.
Me? I want warm sunny weather outside my house and calm inside the White House!

How Boring! The Weather

A mysterious morning! Looking back at the house on a murky morning.... maybe this picture is from even longer ago than I think. Possibly from the fall? I couldn't find a foggy picture, even though we've experienced several very foggy mornings.

And Sunday morning... (at least this picture is recent!) when we had that sudden and ridiculous snowfall. And then today it was almost 80 degrees outside. And tomorrow is going to rain/snow/sleet and be 32. Could the weather please make up it's mind?!?
No wonder everyone got sick this winter. It's hard to acclimate and even know how to dress appropriately. I shed all along my walk this morning and the poor horse that I was supposed to ride today was sweating under minor exertion because she's still wearing her winter coat. Crazy.
I think this is a sort of place-holder blog. I'm still not entirely recovered from my episode of the flu and I haven't felt super-creative. Also, I think I'm a bit exhausted due to my show in NYC. Big energy expenditures when there's little reserve!
Bear with me. Maybe I'll unearth another silly picture or two...

See? That's Bob modeling the (yes!) waders that a friend bequeathed to him. The do fit perfectly and I guess he can wear them when he dredges the pond or takes up eel fishing. Maybe the eels will be running next week if the weather holds.

Feet First

I refuse to discuss weather (more snow anyone?) or art (make that the "art world") so I guess that reduces the range of discourse to socks. But really? On the subject of socks, I think I made out like a bandit when I scored the above socks for only $2 (on total markdown) in the boys section of a department store. Forget women's socks! Made of nasty thin acrylic that offers no warmth or cushioning and they wear out very fast. Even so-called boot socks tend towards the skimpy... if you can even find them.
And look at THESE:

Who designs these things? Ankle shark attack socks... how cool is that? Jules is, of course, getting his big hoof into the shot as if to say, "I don't need to worry about socks!" At least my toes are happy.
I think I'm coming down with a cold so I'm sort of stupid and have a mildly sore throat. That's what I get for having to work at the auction and deal with rude, whiny people instead of playing in my studio! I'm run down and taking pictures of my sock collection! How pathetic is that?
Well, having woke up and realizing that there is three inches of new snow has not done much to improve my state of mind. I want to start gardening, damn it. Stuck inside and sick of it!

And Now For Something Completely Different... The Weather

This is a picture from that first brush with REAL winter weather.  Bob snow-blew up a storm (haha) on Saturday, clearing a swath wide enough for a HumVee to drive through. I think he may have mentioned it would be handy when this weather episode landed. And here it is! (No, those are not dog turds on the snow pile above. Just a few stray late blowing leaves).
Outside, it's what everyone is expecting and predicting: windy cold, snowy and just starting to accumulate. Perfect for staying indoors (if only Jules would let me- he loves this stuff.) and taking over exposed yellow pictures of the lovely blooming bulbs presented by friends.

Looks sort of Eastern European, doesn't it? We haven't gotten around to making a new curtain cover. Hell, I'm just trying to get back into my studio and make some more art. It's good to be working at a normal pace (whatever that is!) without attempting to finish pieces by a particular date or with a specific theme in mind. Although, I am still dwelling on images of financial calamity and fiscal doom. Plenty of room for exploration there! And I know the subject all too well. Hahahaha.
Bob and I went into Brooklyn yesterday, to meet up with a photographer and have my work documented. I also think it was important for me to see that my work is still hanging on the walls of Odetta Gallery and I didn't hallucinate the entire event. Yes, my work was still there and I even got to talk to some gallery goers and give them some insight into my process. (There are actually pockets of real people who go out and look at art. No kidding!) And despite what seemed like tremendous obstacles- yes, even in the controlled and rarefied environment of a gallery!- we got the pictures done. First it was the sunlight pouring into the gallery and creating incredibly uneven shadows, then it was one piece hung in a tight hallway, where it looks great, but was very difficult to get back far enough to shoot. But photographer Max Yawney did a splendid and meticulous job, adjusting and tweaking and spending all afternoon... He really did my work right. Here's a sample.

Even as a small image, it looks great! Of course, I can't share the squeaky toy sewn into the tip, but hey! At least you get the idea.

A New Leash on Life

People don't believe me when I say that Jules and I wear out our leashes. This is the one I "retired" this morning. We go through a new, twelve foot long leash every two months or so. Reliably! I should have bought stock in this company. But what with dragging the leash every day along the paved road, and the dirt road and it gets wet and muddy and covered in snow; I'm honestly surprised we don't wear them out more frequently. By the time I notice that we need a new one, it's been knotted and re-tied in an effort to reinforce the frayed wreck that it has been reduced to. At this stage, I'm always afraid that Jules will run after a squirrel or something and simply break the leash. Tomorrow, we start on a new one.
Here's the little weasel himself:

A shot from this summer that I never used- I thought we could all use a picture of warmth and green. No, I promise, I will not mention rain, snow, fog, and weather what- have- yous.Suffice it to say, Jules is always happy no matter what the weather. Look at that smile! I don't know what he's graduating from, but I'll bet he aced all the tests. (A random balloon that blew into Maggie's pasture last summer.)
And on a rather different note, my artist's book proposal, "Better Guns and Gardens" was selected for inclusion in a show this November at Artspace in New Haven. I need to send a big "thank you" to a good friend, Joan Fitzsimmons (a wonderful photographer) for persisting in suggesting that I submit to this show. I had read the call for entries and had been dismissive, until a great idea for a quirky mash up presented itself to me- hey presto! on my morning walk with Jules. So you see, there is a circular logic to this posting. I get the best ideas on my morning walk with Jules, wearing out those leashes.

The Rapture-Less Saturday

I guess we can all thank our lucky celestial bodies that the world didn't end on Saturday! And although I've started complaing about all the mother f&^%ing rainy days we've had, the above picture is a grim reminder that it could be snow- the frozen equivalent!
Today I was informed that there is a new date set for the end of the world- October 12th or maybe it was the 21st? I was also assured that anyone who died on Saturday or before went to heaven and the rest of us are screwed... we're going to hell. So go ahead and have fun!