a touch of Covid and some ink

Apparently Covid-19 finally found me, probably at a standing-room-only memorial service for our Pastor last week. After all, I never go anywhere! 

So I’ve slept off and on since Wednesday, drinking lots of fluids and aspirin as needed. Not a very bad case; only two real fevers with chills.

Today I finally felt like pulling out my sketchbook but only with a couple of fountain pens. I drew the old Swedish rocker directly in ink but became bored with it near the end. And just now I realized the far supporting bars were left out. Oops!

Pastor Gary Faulkner

tiny Irish sketchbook

This 2” sketchbook from 2009 has handmade non-archival paper — I drew on one side, text on the other. A trip to the zoo, a band concert in the park, and misc. sketches of 3 of our grandkids.

a few tiny sketchbooks

I’ve always had a fascination for tiny things, and that now includes these tiny sketchbooks. My first, the brown leather wrap-around book, was from a 2009 anniversary trip to Weston, Missouri, and is full of zoo sketches, an outdoor summer concert, and other family visits.

I filled the yellow-green Coptic stitch book with my first explorations of Texas wildflowers in 2014. The newer Hahnemuhle ZigZag books are kept in my purse for random on-the-go drawing.

Those two in front were made by hand with such exquisite craftsmanship, I’ve been too intimidated to actually use them. Especially the mauve leather one which is just barely 1” tall — the way my hand shakes, I’m not sure how to work so small.

And that wee sailor doll? A gift from my best friend in high school because I was engaged to a Navy man.

Tater

Another sketch using a Pentel Pocket Brush Pen, this time the sepia version. Unlike the black one, the ink in the sepia pen is not waterproof so I used a waterbrush to add the washes of color. Plus a touch of white gouache for Tater's markings.

3 years ago

The view from Bill’s woodshop looking into our living room — as it looked on this day in 2020 . . . . . It’s changed a bit.

another random drawing

This is yet another random drawing as I try to regain control of my Pentel Pocketbrush pen in spite of my sometime shaky right hand. My iPhone was handy, so why not attempt it? I even tried a bit of writing with the brush tip but that is harder. (Other text was done with a regular Lamy fountain pen.)

yesterday’s shopping

After receiving notification that a book on my search list came in, we drove to The Book Attic in Tomball to pick it up. Last year I read all of the Dorothy L. Sayers mystery books as ebooks checked out from a Houston library. Knowing I would definitely want to re-read them, I am keeping my eye out for hardback paper copies of the series and this is my first find.

The Book Attic is presently housed in the same building they were in in past years but now a realty company operates out of a large two-story building added to the back. My receipt says they will be moving to a new location in the near future.

I understand that removing the extra door and windows gave them more bookshelf room inside, but the business looked so much more charming before the remodel, as shown in the photo below.

from where I sit

A year or so ago I drew this same view from the same overstuffed chair across the room, but at that time we had a full-sized couch instead. We have since replaced the couch with this double recliner loveseat -- and love it! Great to be able to put our feet up when we want to, and it fits the small space much better.

And yes, that electric socket on the far wall is higher than normal -- Bill decided when he deigned the barn conversion that it would be done with "getting old" in mind. Higher receptacles mean not needing to lean down to plug something in. He also installed a wheelchair-friendly shower but I'm not expecting to ever need it as such. 

I love that he took a rough diagonal slice of a cedar tree to form the floating wall shelf that holds our TV. But the TV's speakers are in back; instead of bouncing sound back into the room, the foam insulation in that wall absorbs sound. So we needed to add a sound bar under the cedar shelf.

That folded afghan on the back of the loveseat was a gift from daughter-in-law Misty years ago and has a huge Scottish Terrier on the center. When I use it, I think of Fiona, my first Scottie adopted in 1992.

I began this sketch with the Pentel Pocketbrush pen but I kept getting chunky lines where I did not want them (stupid tendinitis!) so I finished with a Kaweco Liliput fountain pen.