North East Open Studios commences 12th September through to the 21st. Although I have participated as part of my Wednesday Art Group the last two years, at the Museum of Scottish Lighthouses. But that was a group. Now it is me on my own in the shedudio.
So - it is sort out and clean BIG TIME.
Two panels and a table tick.
Third panel hung. Tick.
Mini trail poster . Tick.
This with a map will go into the main catalogue.
Tick. Distribute catalogues. Ah well....... Plenty time.
But you can view my entry.
I have to go now, there are eleven more panels. Some still to have shed paint second coat... Have paintings hung. Sort out browsers. Make more cards. Mop floor.
Why do I agree to do these things? Away to do my breathing exercises.
He is back. Jet lagged. Exhausted.
This was tonight. The wood burner lit in July. Although I too was feeling the unseasonal chill. And I hadnt been anywhere tropical.
A proper wild Orang Utang. To see this involved tramps in the jungle, camping in the jungle, eating in the jungle and c******g in the jungle. Quite exhausting.
A bit of R and R was factored in.
The view from his bungalow. Pity he also shared it with bed bugs.
So - all in all quite an adventure. Not many birds as they were at the top of the trees in the jungle. So the expensive book "Sumatran Birds" was the only views he got.
But he is back. Safe. Jet lagged and tired. But back.
The Dawn Patroller has gone to Sumatra with his sister. She is an inveterate traveller but has run out of people to accompany her. Hence family pressure was applied.
He and she up a Sumatran volcano.
Sumatran natives.
And the obligatory Yellow duck. (See previous posts for more information on yellow ducks.) This one has a Saltire (Scottish) flag on its chest. The DP forgot to take a yellow duck and bought this at Edinburgh Airport.
They do not smile much in Sumatra do they? Could be something to do with the strange British person carrying a yellow duck.
So I am alone apart from the two cats for two and a half weeks.
I have to say it has not been fun. Feeding the garden birds I have had to use my inventive powers as to how to fill twenty feeders a day without collapsing. Carrying three plastic jugs to and fro from garage storage to feeding stations was way too much. I now have carrier bags in the kitchen for the top garden feeders and the same in the studio for the bottom garden feeders. If I fill carrier bags they last two days and its one walk to feeders. The ones on the fence I cannot reach so tough. Should you be interested to know why I cannot do more, just do all your chores with a straw to breathe through. You will soon get the idea of the challenge.
However I have taken full advantage of the DP's absence. I have totally trimmed the book shelves. Only of mine own books I hasten to add.
Half way through. 14 carrier bags full gone at this stage. Agatha Christie, lots of other crime writers, many classics I have read over and over again and will never read again.
All being collected by my favourite charity, New Arc, who rescue anything including wild life. In turn we have taken from them the odd duck. Real feathered ones, not yellow plastic.
I will show you an after picture. To be honest once the shelves are sorted you cannot tell that great swathes of books have gone. But like the animals and birds from the New Arc I hope my books will be enjoyed by others via their charity shops.
One very interesting fact coming out of me being on my own for two and a half weeks is the offers of help I have had. Dinner, drinks, lunch, bit of company......all offers from the males of the human species. Presumably I still have some allure?!
So 6p.m. door locked, jamas on and endless repeats of Midsomer Murders - I am fine.
This post is dedicated to my fellow blogger at Rusty Duck. Jessica battles with nature attacking her garden. Including deer. You need a higher fence.
5a.m. out on his Dawn Patrol just by our house.
The Dawn Patroller is better at taking pictures of animals and birds. Calling out my name and snapping the camera at the same time is not a good idea.....
The photograph was taken at Fraserburgh Art Summer Exhibition's private viewing. Private viewing just means invites only and lets all get paralytic. After being accused of drinking any profits last year I took my own bottle......
Once in full swing the following day and the day after that it was fun all the way.
Three of mine hung. I had five more but the DP did not want me to get too big headed.
I also had eight unframed, mounted, displayed which he also neglected to picture for posterity.
Below are the results of a group exercise of one of the Art groups who meet at Dalrymple Hall.
Mine is not amongst them. One of the few I produce that went straight in the bin.
We had Activities for children and adults.
And, no, we could not keep the yellow ducks out.....
A good time had by all.
Sold to a very discerning purchaser.
Sooooooo back to the drawing board.
Got my very own Kim and Aggie.
Remember them? For readers overseas these two did a t.v. programme, I think it was called 'How Clean is Your House.'
Well mine wasnt. The Dawn Patroller does loads in and out of the house. But there is a limit. His was above floor level.
So I was banished down the shed while my two ladies got stuck in for two hours. Henceforth it will be an hour a week. I returned to find everything gleaming.
Although I did have to open all the windows and doors to get rid of the perfume of Stardrops. We did examine closely the ingredients as they left the almost empty bottle. I will eventually get round to googling the ingredients as I didnt do chemistry at school, but the perfume was a very large percentage ingredient. We are used to white vinegar and borax here....
While they were beavering away in the house I sat down the shedudio. I did some painting.
My granddaughter is into elephants so this is on the drawing board.
As is this one of Puffins.
I always have a few on the go as I get frustrated waiting for the paint to dry.
But this one is finished. Wren Family.
In September I am taking part in NEOS - North East Open Studios. Solo. In the shedudio. Scary.
So I am, in between -painting - tweaking. Trying to make it ok for visitors....
This is the back of the shedudio. I managed to (nearly kill myself) haul this huge mirror to behind the sink and reflect a bit of light back. I cleaned the mirror too. But not yet around it!
Later in the day I was out at one of the art groups and on coming home came across something similar to this.
Got the photo off tinternet. Our roads dont have white lines. But you get the idea.
Other cars were driving past the poor beast.
So I turned off up another lane to the farm.
"Take it home, chop it up and eat it." was the laid back response.
Howsomever one very glamorous attractive young lady came and rounded it up and announced , "I think its lambing."
One never gets bored living here.
The Dawn Patroller also had a surprise this morning.
If anyone is surprised at him seeing a badger in daylight, we are nearing the longest day 21st June, so it doesnt really get dark.
Apart from being heavily involved -still - with yellow plastic ducks I am busy on other fronts.
All Saints Episcopalian Church at Strichen had its annual art exhibition.
It is a lovely wee church. Balanced on all the ends of pews, on pews, on the shelf all the way around, up the pulpit and in front of the altar...place was packed with paintings and photographs.
I sold this one.
Stupidly sad to see it go!
I am now in the throes of arranging an exhibition. This is our second which will be in Dalrymple Hall in Fraserburgh. The three art groups who meet their weekly, at different times, together with the Photographic Society take over the hall for the weekend at the end of June. Trying to sort out rotas, labels, hanging is a nightmare.
Here is me last year. And I still havent worked out how to have a wine glass holder on the 'chariot'......
Another Art exhibition looming at Mintlaw next week.
Oh - I have set on a pair of ladies who start next week cleaning our home. My last experience of employing a cleaner was many years back when I worked full time. Strangely there is a duck theme here too. I had a collection of wooden ducks. Over the weeks of her employment she managed to break off every beak from every duck. Perhaps I should stick to plastic ones.
So I leave you with a photograph of a variety of signs down our lane with a yellow plastic duck in there somewhere. No prize for spotting it.
Although I would like to know what happened to the dead in the 19th century......
