more park drawing & painting. this time i used a super inexpensive varsity fountain pen.
yesterday i sat on a bench by the redwood trees and listened to michael hoppé & tim wheater while i drew. i was having a major ecstatic moment. the sunlight slanting through the trees. the scent of opening blossoms & pine. the quiet. the music. oh the music!
laying down my crooked lines. staring at each leaf & petal. i felt a great calming hush.
it's that feeling that drove me to submit my application for a 6 month leave of absence recently. i won't find out until the end of april.
i want more time like this. less noise, more stillness.
the chance to sit look listen study read.
to study my collections of shells & plants. (sharron tell lucy the "poor man's" orchid pups she gave me are flourishing)
you who are homebodies know the deep pleasures of HOME and the longing to settle in and tend to the nest.
it's all i want to do. interspersed, of course, with the great american road trip that's unfolding in my mind.
I am in awe. colors, stillness, sun shine, peace=inspired.
Thank-you.
You really have a patio out there, and it’s gorgeous! I do love the nesting. And I also love it that you’re the only blogger I visit fairly regularly who still gets this many comments!
Good on ya’ for taking another sabbatical. You got a lotta stuff to do! Love your pages, and that sweet spot on your porch with all the plants is just divine!
I drive truck, so I get to do road trips as part of my job. However, I’m away from home for three weeks at a time. Finding time to art is so hard! However, I’m doing much better at it since Sketchbookery. My time on the road has led to a desire for my mama to get to see it, too. So on May 4, we are doing an 8 state loop starting in central California, going to Disneyland, Vegas, all the big parks in Utah, Yellowstone, then over to Washington and driving down the coast to Monterey. We’ll stop at my new house in Washington (CANNOT WAIT!) and it’s going to be a sketchbook-full trip. We’re taking a full month, while my sweet man continues to drive the truck to “keep me in the manner to which I have become accustomed.” It’s getting exciting here!
Another wonderful post I’m loving that porch with the filtered light peeking through that’s a heavenly place…..a nesting place …
~sigh~
Nesting. Traveling. Exploring. Sketching. All sound so wonderful. Fingers crossed that you get to take your leave of absence.
In december I left my job of 14 years and have been home. I absolutely love it. I stay so busy with everything I enjoy doing and the family is better also. I understand!
thanks for the inspiration. My most recent travels have been long slow road trips in western United States and I’m beginning to think my love affair with Europe is dwindling. North America seems limitless in space and interesting places. Of course the dollar islooking really good in Europe this year – oh well. Good luck in getting the time. I will add your name to my Ju-ju chanting of a morning.
Good luck with the sabbatical application! I love being retired. Although I STILL do not have all the time to do the things I really want to do. Priorities!
Aloha, Kate
Whoa! Seriously exciting news here, and I don’t mean about lucy’s poor mans orchid pups, fingers crossed for the end of April good news…xox
When you say you draw with inks, what do you mean? When you talk about fountain pens, what do you mean? I am a beginner and so unsure of materials. Please help!
Another sabbatical? Great! Pictures/drawings are wonderful.
I’ve been a stay at home body for most of my life, brief forays into the business world convinced me that home is best. It’s on my bucket list to make a road trip around the perimeter of the USA. “See the USA in your Chevrolet!” remember that little diddy? I want to take one of those camper/Van things and just go where I point it. Hope this happens for you.
Fingers crossed for your leave for ‘presence’ ;))))
Missy from the bayou
Woohoo! Sending vibes for the big yes on your request!
Hope your six month sabbatical is approved! I’m a homebody–I know exactly how you feel. Lovely sketches you’ve been making with your inks.
Oooh, I’m squealing here behind my desk! Hope the leave of absence goes through for you. Enjoy your little vacation. And I so get being a homebody with some traveling urges. 😉
The “great calming hush” restored me (a little) after a hectic 12-hr working day.
To sit look listen study read…. what a great aspiration.
I just love a visit to your pages! Day made. Gray and coral. Glitter hearts. Leaves. Stillness.
Yes, it’s always a toss-up, isn’t it? Road trip? Home? Road trip? Home? What a wonderful conundrum to find ourselves in. Sure hope you get your leave of absence.
Sister that warm gray and creamy peach combo are a match made in heaven!
Thanks for sharing your sketches, stories, and aspirations on your blog. You’ve really inspired me to start drawing and painting again in a way that feels good to me. I love your playful attitude. It helps counteract my monkey attitude. Monkey attitudes are not compatible with creating stuff. I hope, one way or another, that art continues to fill your days and delight you. I wish the same for myself! Hooray for playfulness. 🙂
I love your porch…it’s SO inviting! Glad you’re having a week off to enjoy it. Happy Spring! xo