Tag Archives: short stories

Tuesday the 23rd.

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FogHorn LegHorn

FogHorn LegHorn

Many years ago we had a little farm with fifteen chickens, and two roosters. Our first rooster we named “FogHorn LegHorn,” and I never minded that he awakened us each morning at the same time…..EARLY.

We had many other animals on our small farm, but this is really about our first rooster.  A friend of ours built us a huge, really nice coup where all the hens & rooster lived at night.  I don’t remember ever having trouble with the rooster when they were in the pen, but when they were all out pecking around, eating worms, and free ranging the rooster was so much fun to watch.  Of course, he did what all roosters did even though he wasn’t old enough to make a difference.  We had friends show up on our front doorstep with a six-pack of beer, and munchies just to relax on a Sunday afternoon in the back.  They would sit all afternoon chatting, munching on goodies, and sharing beer just to watch FogHorn LegHorn and his hens.  Those were fun days, and the memories of them are worthy of many short stories.

I’ve always wanted to paint chickens, or a rooster, and finally I took the leap. Since I’m not really fond of realism, I decided to paint an abstract rooster.  To tell the truth, this little canvas (10″X 24″) was given to me as a challenge, and I didn’t have a clue what I would do with it.  So the other day I primed it in orange, and then it began to speak.   Before I knew what was happening, I was roughly sketching out a rooster.  The next thing I knew I mixed up a light version of Cobalt Teal and began negatively painting.

It isn’t finished, but I’m having so much fun that I had to show all of you the possibilities of a challenge.

FogHorn LegHorn will be back. He won’t change much but he will be changed, and this is where abstract is going for me at the moment.

A Chilly Spring Day!

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Wow, a bouncing baby girl!  Of course, I really wasn’t bouncing at the time, that came later, but a baby girl, I definitely was!  I think my mother told me that we were in the hospital for two weeks. Can you believe that, two weeks! Now days if you get to stay over night, you’re lucky. Being a nurse myself, I’ve seen new mothers kicked out of the hospital when they were too young to even have a child, didn’t know how to care for it, and needed some extra time with the nurses to help them get comfortable with the care and feeding of an infant. But not us, we got an entire two weeks.

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My parents built a home in Royal Oaks, in the burbs of Detroit.  I recall my mother telling me it was just off of Woodward Rd, or maybe it was Two Mile Road. Either way I’m sure it doesn’t look, feel, or smell the same today. That was more than a half century ago….. things have changed!

 

IMG_2868We had a sweet little home, I remember it well.   Ok, I remember the outside really well because I still have a picture. Lately, I’ve been going through all the old pictures with noting on the back to tell me who they were.   I wish my mother would have written who they were, or where they were taken, it would have been oh so much easier…on me! I have all these pictures of ancient relatives who don’t have any names on the back, and wouldn’t it have been nice to know who they were, and where they were taken?

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For a while I actuarially belonged to a Genealogy Club, trying to learn how to research, and find my heritage. That’s a lot more difficult than one might think. My heritage is English, Irish, and Scotch, two-thirds of them came to Canada on a boat,it could have even been a rowboat, or a blow up boat for all I know. The records are difficult to find, even with help! Eventually, it took up so much time researching dead relatives, that I had to decide if I wanted to sit in front of a computer getting a bubble butt, or did I want to paint. I decided to paint instead, and leave the research to a time when I couldn’t paint, or see to paint. The irony is, if I can’t see to paint, I can’t see to research! I’ll tell you though, it certainly is fun when you can find a lost, and forgotten relative that you knew was there, but had never been ably to locate before!

Ok, Ok enough of the genealogy stuff!  That stuff will come much later…..

 

 

 

 

The Journey Continues…

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Royal Dutch Airline

8100+ milestone Amsterdam!
Again the stewardess is making her way around the plane! This time to serve dinner. It’s 3:30 pacific time, and even though I’m not hungry, it’s soon to be bedtime, and in 7:45 minutes we will arrive in Amsterdam! This food is better than most airplane food, but if it were to be terrible, few would send it back for fear of starvation!
I need to sleep, or yesterday will be a rough day!
Ground speed. 625mph
Distance. 4740 mi
Altitude. 10683
Outside air temp. 48F. I’m glad I’m not actually flying, it’s too cold out there!

Distance 7180. We’re hitting a little turbulence at the moment. Some would say more than a little. Some would even say, “we’re hitting air pockets!” Well…yes, we are in the air, so technically it’s one big pocket!

A few minutes ago we were flying over Wyoming! I’ve not been to Wyoming, at least not since I was really little. Now we’re over South Carolina.
Are speed is 631 mph, and wasting no time. We should arrive at 8:32 am Amsterdam time….yesterday!
I’ve been trying to sleep for a while, after 1/2 an ambian, and a Coniac, I’m not sleeping, maybe cursing is a better way to put it. I feel relaxed & peaceful while my eyes are closed, listening to Chris Bode on iTunes.

There is less than five hours until we land in Amsterdam, and  the plane is  at an altitude of 35052.   Imagine everyone finishing  ice-cream at 35052 ft in the air,  with everyone buzzing from their sugar high!  It’s a good thing I didn’t partake, or I wouldn’t be able to rest and continue on cruise.

Looks like we’re flying over Montreal, and almost half way to our destination.

A couple of laps around the plane to keep my circulation going, and I’m feeling a little better – so far only a numb butt has been a problem!

Outside air temp is currently -61*F. That’s a bit chilly.

Still over Canada, but rapidly approaching the Atlantic Ocean, the cabin is once again settling down……

Fabulous Friday

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First Tomatoes

First Tomatoes

Can you look at this…….

Not too long ago Les and I filled a water trough for horses, and filled it with organic soil.  Costco had certified organic plants, and venturing out we purchased three plants.   We really are beginners.

Proudly we returned home with One Cherry tomato, one green pepper, and one cilantro plant.  They were planted in the large container that was to be their new home.  I had no idea how much or how little to water them, and figured once a week was a good choice.  Bad choice!  It soon became clear that once a week was not enough.  The rain brought me to my senses, and quickly realized they needed a great deal more water than they were getting.  Ever since, I’ve been hand watering them every other day.  When it gets hot and sunny, I’m sure they will need water every day.

Bell Peppers

Bell Peppers

 

The other day I looked at the full, bushy plants and found three small bell peppers, and a handful of beautiful red cherry tomatoes.  My husband, Les and I decided that we  now considered ourselves “farmers,” even if it was on a very small-scale!  To actually get something to grow is a very big deal for us.

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I seem to get succulents to grow well, but tomatoes, and peppers are a whole different game.

On the other hand, the cilantro plant is hanging on, trying to keep it together.  I have tried cilantro many times over decades, and for some reason, I can’t seem  to keep them alive.

 

 

Thursday Time Out for Art

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Molly Moo the Free Cow

Molly Moo the Free Cow

Here we are again, it’s a Fabulous Friday, and another weekend is starting.  I always think the weekend starts on a Friday, that way we get longer weekends…..Not that it really matters once we retire!

I finally finished Molly Moo the Free Cow!

She has taken me long enough, but you can’t rush creativity, right?

There are at least four under-paintings that Molly  is sitting on.  Each time I’d get about half way through them,  I’d lose interest.  The painting wouldn’t speak to me, and I’d be lost.  So it would sit there on my easel for months, leaving me feeling down, and uncreative.  Finally I decided that whatever I’d been working on clearly wasn’t my thing, or I’d be inspired to keep going, even finish it.

I realized that if I loved what I was doing, I’d want to do it all the time!

That’s when I decided to do something fun, freely creative, and funky.  I love funky!  I really love Molly Moo with her tea bag, and free spirit.  I had fun doing her, and am going to start another funky painting, so it’s back to the drawing board…

Thursday Time Out for Art

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I’ve been making an effort to sketch, and maybe paint each day.  It isn’t easy when it seems everyone want’s a piece of my time.  If I can take it early in the morning, I’m in luck.  I’m an early morning person.  As the day wears on, I lose all my energy, rendering me Toast!  Burnt toast at that.

This week I did this little sketch, and had to add watercolor just because…I could!  Simple, imperfect in its imperfection, and that’s what I like most.  As you can see, I was playing with mixing greens.  I love mixing my greens, and rarely used premixed greens any more.

Check out Time out for art on Zebra Design & Destination.