The wind is picking up here in the woods, and the camp sites are beginning to fill up for the coming weekend. The above site is presently empty but has a reserved sign. We normally prefer not camping over weekends due to heavier crowds, but this time our kids and grandkids are coming for a family get-together tomorrow. We tried to keep our 50th wedding anniversary low-key but it has become a party after all.
This week we are camping in the Stephen F. Austin State Park along the Brazos River, on a section of the original land grant where Austin made his home. Several of the trees near our campsite have these thick vines climbing around the trunks. Not sure what they are.
Spotty, weak internet — I may or may not be able to post this!
I forgot to include this in-process photo with yesterday’s post, but thought I would go ahead and post it separately to show my recent set-up. Inspired by Brenda Swenson’s recent newsletter (which can be subscribed to HERE), I attached 2 mixing pans to a business card sized magnet — then clipped it together with a Pocket Palette to my sketchbook. Works brilliantly!
We were browsing in a favorite bookstore in Brenham recently where I saw a vintage TV sitting on top of a bookstore. The quote written on the screen was too good not to sketch:
“I find television very educational. Every time someone turns it on I go into another room and read a good book.” — Groucho Marx
This old TV looks very much like the black % white set we rented from the Navy Exchange when we were first married, just about 50 years ago.
For Mother’s Day, our son-in-law planned a tour of Bee Weaver’s Honey Farm outside of Navasota. We learned about raising bees, harvesting honey, and making mead — ending with a mead tasting event. I was hoping to buy some local raw honey, but this place raises bees to sell along with beekeeping supplies; all honey harvested goes into producing various flavors and strengths of mead. The company is the oldest honey farm in the state, run by 5 generations of the Weaver family since 1888.
. . . from a 1920s mystery I’m reading on my iPad. I somehow came across a series of Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries checked out as e-books from the library. This quote had to do with a suspect wishing to add to her alibi story — but it often fits sketchbook art as opposed to framed artwork as well.
“The rough sketch is frequently so much more convincing than the worked-up canvas.”
Last November Bill, who used to never catch a cold, actually caught one. A few days taking Cold-Eeze and he was fine. Unfortunately I caught it from him — and for some reason, Cold-Eeze makes me sick.
After returning from our latest camping trip, Bill once again caught a cold (for someone who never used to get them, he seems to be making up for lost time). I tried extra-hard to catch it this time and thought I had managed to avoid it. Until late Saturday night when I felt like I was freezing, and we keep our air-conditioning fairly warmer than most.
So here I am, lacking energy for just about anything except this silly sketch.
