Things to be Thankful For

November seems to have slithered away from me and here we are, poised to celebrate Thanksgiving. I reflect that this is a good time to stop and appreciate all the many things we have to be thankful for.
How about cheerful autumn berries, adorning a lovely Ilex outside my studio? I am happy that even in the late fall, color abounds in nature. Hell, I'm thankful for the persistence of nature in the face of so much man-made destruction. Melting ice caps, rising sea levels, species being driven to extinction... I could go on and on. But I'm trying to be thankful so thanks Mother Earth!

I'm also thankful for the mammal denizens of nature that surround me and enrich my life. Thanks Robin the Good! Thanks for being a good friend and a generally cheerful all around help. I can't be upset or mad for too long when Robin gives me one of her sublime doe-eyed smiles and steals my gloves and socks and indulges in other canine silliness. What a swell doggo!

And thanks to Maggie the Mexican Pony for not being dead in the field last week. I got a good scare but she's up and around on four hooves and enjoying the last warm days of fall. And thanks to the horses that I ride for my lessons. They seem to have decided I'm okay and worthy of a whinny of recognition when I go to the barn and they haven't tossed me off into a manure pile when I ask them to do something- often incorrectly. Fine beasts!

Thanks for all our illustrious friends! Bob and I know some really entertaining characters (ahem! I understand that we fall well within that spectrum!) like Andy, seen above in festive array. They're all fine artists and swell company. I am truly thankful for friends as they redeem my faith in humanity when it is flagging. (And god knows, there is plenty of evidence as to the stupidity, cruelty and capriciousness of people these days...)
And family; I could have done worse in the family department. They aren't rethuglican reprobates who make me question my sanity or whether we really share the same blood and parentage. I actually look forward to seeing them tomorrow on Thanksgiving day and sharing observations on the impeachment hearings, along with consuming heroic portions of food. No need to avoid politics. Yay!

And I'm thankful for Bob and me (pictured here in warmer times). We're the right kind of nuts!

An Early Morning Scare

So in this picture, Maggie seems unconcerned and is preoccupied by the common horse behavior of grazing. This presents a very different picture than just a mere hour or so earlier...
I emerged from the house at about 6:15, bucket of horse food in one hand, accompanied by my beloved Robin the Good who was providing escort. I had just gone through the gate when Robin began to bark; I assumed she had spotted turkeys or a deer in the field. But it was unusual that Maggie wasn't at the fence, waiting for her breakfast. She does like to eat her grain and most typically greets my early morning feed with lusty whinnies and sometimes even a buck or gallop or two. I checked the barn and didn't see her there and was wondering where she had gotten to when I spied a green lump in the middle of the field near a brush heap. The green lump, of course, was her form swaddled in her lighter winter blanket. (See above photo).
My first thought was, "Good grief! Maggie has gone and died!" I mean, she is elderly and will disembark for that giant paddock in the sky sometime soon. (You will remember that my ex-blacksmith thought she should be put down last winter. She's had a whole year more to live, in relative horse bliss; getting brushed and fed and generally doing low key things.) I approached her singing her name and trying not to scare her if she was merely sleeping.
But as I got closer, I realized that she was in an awkward position, lying on the ground with her feet uphill from her back and head so that if she tried to rise, she was fighting against the weight of her body. I went downhill and stroked her head and said her name and her eyes opened and she tried to get up again but just couldn't. She tried several terrifying times to stand. I started calculating in my head just how many neighbors I'd need to round up to help her regain her feet. ( Horses sometimes get "cast" in their stalls, with their legs up against a wall. They need serious help to right themselves or can hurt themselves and die. With the assistance of ropes, you can right them, but it takes strength and luck!)
I started back up the hill, considering the odds of Maggie being unhurt. But as I got to the gate, I turned and saw... MAGGIE upright and coming to get her grain. Don't ask me how she finally managed to gain her footing, but she proceeded to walk in a normal fashion- no limping or anything- and made a bee line for her grain.
I examined her but there were no cuts or swellings or abrasions... boy was she lucky. Boy was I lucky! I gave her a "bute" (the horsey equivalent advil) and took the picture above, but she had apparently already forgotten her earlier struggle and didn't seem to understand why I was fussing over her. Well, she scared the hell out of me- and too early in the morning! But Maggie is a tough old bird.

Not Ready For Cold Weather!!

Not very thrilling, huh? To you it may look simply like an empty plastic bucket, but to me it signals victory. I did it: I planted the three million daffodil and tulip bulbs I "accidentally" ordered!
The "accident" part is a somewhat amusing story of friends collaborating on an order and a few substitutions later, I wind up with a lot of bulbs. I had anticipated the spots I had marked in my Lilac Border would be sufficient for the thirty or so white daffodil bulbs I intended to plant. Believe me, I got varieties that I'm certain will be marvelous, but I had to dig quite a few more holes and prepare an entire new area. Suffice it to say that next year's garden is going to be spectacular. I am eagerly awaiting the vernal appearance of "Snowboard", "Frosty Snow", "Thalia", and "Starry Night"- and that's just the daffodils! (These, of course, are to compliment the "Ice Follies", "Mount Hood", "Thalia" and "Barrett Browning already in place!)
I was fortunate that despite a couple of rainy days (read downpours) that impeded my planting, (along with several art-related events that I was frantically preparing for) it was relatively mild and I was able to get everyone buried before the snows fly. Yes, it is expected to rain and then snow today, in direct contrast to yesterday's benevolent 60 degree weather. I'm for sure not prepared for that! It was nice to plant in reasonable temperatures; typically, I am a "cheap date" and I purchase my bulbs marked down at home improvement centers in late November and flirt with frostbite while planting in sleet and worse. The things we endure for next year's garden!
So here's a more fantastical scene:

That's my garden helper and all around shadow Robin the Good adorning our bedazzled stairway. She looked so sweet when I took the picture, but the carpet looked so dingy that I had to improve on it. Robin thoroughly enjoys helping in the garden and keeps me in good spirits when my energy flags. (Believe me, removing the sod from another area was not what I originally anticipated!) Robin is sneaky, though, and steals gloves, empty plastic perennial pots and generally anything not weighted down in the wheelbarrow. Some help!
Anyway, everybody's planted and I'm ready for some serious indoor activity. (My mosaic project is regrettably on hold until next spring as cement isn't happy in cold weather.) My studio awaits!

A Romantic Interlude

Robin's got a boyfriend! A very nice doggo with an interesting history... more on that later! His name is Ding and he's a lovely Golden Retriever...
Ding's human (a very nice woman!) was so committed to our dogs meeting that she drove Ding out for a visit on a sunny Saturday... all the way from Queens. Robin isn't thrilled with car rides and I suggested that as we have a generous and attractive fenced in garden, it would be the perfect place for a romantic first meeting. I think the dogs agreed!
Robin is sometimes a little shy with new dogs, but she and Ding seemed to hit it off... she only issued a throaty growl (channeling her inner Lauren Bacall) once. I think she missed Ding the next day; sniffing around the yard where they had been together. We are hoping for a more intimate hook- up next spring.


*And before everyone gets all cranky and judgemental, I will state- as I have three million times before: I never (REALLY!!! NEVER!!!!) wanted children, but I've always wanted a litter of puppies. And no, this is not some sort of weird cross species transference. I just love dogs.

*AND I am neither stupid nor naive (despite what some detractors may say!!Haahahahahaha!!) I know that having puppies is a messy, bloody, poopy, exhausting ordeal, but I still want to do this and have a Robin the Good offspring. I have asked Robin what she thinks and she just answers with her typical inscrutable deadpan gaze. What a dog!

*Additionally, it's not as easy as one would think to have puppies. Firstly, there are many prejudices against mixed breeds. Pure bred dog owners ask exorbitant stud fees and are mostly only interested in breeding to another pure bred (despite inherited health risks!). They seem to think their dog is going to be ruined by breeding to a mix: Unclean! Contamination!  Don't get me started...
Also, so many people have castrated their males that there are few available to breed to. (At some point in the future, I will bore you all with my advanced research into the health benefits of NOT castrating your male...  Castration leads to all kinds of awful side effects like senility, cancer, joint issues)  I could go on and on. It has literally taken me three years to find a partner for Robin!! (Someday I will relate all the surfing of "dog porn" that I have under gone. It's an education!)


 

Smashy Smashy Bang Bang!

That's me photobombing my own creation.. Round 2 of mosaicing the tree! I had so much fun smashing all those plates! Thank goodness that I work at a facility that not only breaks its share of plates in the moving part of the job, but receives a great deal of already cracked, chipped and busted crockery. The pile I have at home is being sorted...
There are so many small details that accompany this project: assemble all tools, turn on the hose, smash plates (yes, wearing eye protection and gloves and covering plate to be deconstructed with a piece of cloth), sort plates into color coded piles, etc etc. I'm learning so much as I go, too, like smaller bits work much better. On the flat surface of the walk way, larger pieces were possible as they didn't have to defy gravity. going up the side of the tree- and around the curved surface!- presents a whole slew of logistical issues. I'm having fun!

Here's a closer read of the color. As noted previously, this particular tree will be in the reds/oranges/pinks range. The yellow above is actually gold from the rims of some really nice dishes- extra glittery! Trying to keep the integrity of the plate design has proven challenging. I'm happy with the abstracted quality as I'm not looking to be pictorial but some of the plates seem to expand on application and the image gets a bit diffuse. Luckily, my early efforts are at the base of the tree and will be semi-obscured buy the asters that grow in this particular garden area. But it all looks pretty great!
For those additionally interested in my inspirations, you only have to look up Antoni Gaudi, Park Guell, Watts Towers, Maison Picassiette, or Le Palais Ideal. Amazing!!

Now What Are They Making!?!??!!?

Well, true to my threats and promises, I started makin' mosaic on one of the dead trees. Here is an underpinning... sort of a cross between armor and lingerie. Tree looks sexy: all silvery and sinuous and shiny!

My hands and arms don't, though. Despite wearing gloves and a long sleeved sweat shirt, the metal lathing (that I had to apply in order to give a surface for the cement to stick to) is very sharp and scratched the hell out of me. It was fun anyway, learning to use a new material and solve problems along the way. First I tried wiring the pieces together but that didn't work. Then I discovered that fencing nails (the ones bent like "U" shapes) worked, as did the big-headed nails that Bob gave me. (Bob was busy repairing his studio roof line... there's always something to do around here!) I bashed my thumb and swore up a storm but it was exciting and challenging.
Several experts suggested that I reinforce the base of the tree with rebar* but I- maybe impetuous!- declined, thinking that the dead tree, once it's housed in a sheath of concrete, will stand longer than I will. Besides, if it falls over, we'll gave spectacular ruins and it will still be a romantic mess! O Ozymandias!!

My assembled tools; not sure if you can see the cache of band-aids in the corner of the wheel barrow!
It will be interesting to see how far I get with all the broken crockery I have assembled. When we did the walkway, I thought we'd have tons and tons of material but it got used up quickly and I had to go to a second hand store and purchase an entire snow-flake themed set of dinnerware. If the walkway was predominately blue and white (it borders the Blue Garden), I am feeling this trunk will be corseted in more reds and oranges. I have some right purty coppery/autumnal platters to smash!

As my riding lesson was cancelled today due to high winds and a chance of rain, I may be able to start the cement stage of the proceedings. I learned from our adventures on the walk way that planning a design a head of time- and preparing the pieces- makes the job easier.

*Hey! The experts who work in rebar were unavailable due to scheduling (and other) conflicts. this meant I either had to wait (until god knows when) or never begin this project. The clematis that I planted on this very same tree skeleton was growing fast!!

Enjoy It While Ye May!

I'm milking this dying bouquet because soon enough, the only flowers available will be the ones in my fertile imagination. Fall is here and it's blustery and we lost all our tender annuals- with the freaky exception of a particularly intrepid corner of zinnias! Actually, I've got quite an assortment of potted plants temporarily residing in my studio so we won't be entirely without greenery this winter. Now, where to put all those plants in the living room...
I'm also posting a picture here of an interesting visitor that Bob and I had late last week:

Look at that thing! He was BIG- way bigger than the photo suggests. This large insect was scaling one of Bob's sculptures and we couldn't help but notice him. He was carefully feeling his way up the steel... Here's his other side:

(I'm saying "he" but maybe it's a girl. I'm not sure how we tell.) Anyway, he/she was was oblivious to my efforts to document him/her.  We're guessing it's a type of cricket. Impressive and eerie.
But speaking of insects/bugs/pests/varmints/vermin and official lice...
Holy cow! Impeachment! Talk about draining swamps and all things pestilence! I can't look the news away and maybe the changing seasons becomes an advanced metaphor for changing directions in a seriously misguided administration. I could go on for days (and believe me, I'd rather discuss insects!) but did anyone really think that Rudy Giuliani (who DOES look like Nosferatu...) was a good guy? Please: the best thing that could have happened in this amazingly action packed week was that "two associates" of Giuliani's were arrested. More arrests to come. I'm on the edge of my seat and looking forward to designer handcuffs!