Chasing the Sun

If you read my blog last week, and I sincerely hope you did, you will recall that I was in Texas. There are not many reasons a fresh veggie lovin’ liberal from northern California would visit the land of everything-deep-fried-including-Oreos, certainly not for the foot long corndogs or the politics–no, no–NOT the politics, but I had a VALID reason to go to the lonestar state, the BEST reason of all … I’m a grandma.

Raining Puppies

Now go read that post so you can see how seriously I take this grandma stuff. You have to do that so you can understand how leaving the munchkin would’ve been hard, would’ve been devastating, would’ve broken my heart in a thousand little bitty pieces…if I didn’t have something to look forward to…

A side trip to Las Vegas to visit an old friend. A friend who knows me well enough to know that rocks and sun and light and big sky would feed my soul. Feed hers as well. 

It was a quick visit, 48 hours, nearly every one of which–when we weren’t sleeping—involved driving around the desert. 

Chasing the sun.

desert

 

deset

 

 desert 4

 

 desert 3

And falling in love with a landscape stripped down to the basics. A landscape that makes you reach deep inside and pull something out you didn’t know was there. Something...holy.

desert 5

 

Long before the gamblers, the silicon titties, the wild and frantic seven deadly sins check-list that is the Vegas strip, long before that, THIS was here.

And the ancient ones who painted their lives, their gods, their hunts, their stories on the walls of rock were here.

I’ll be back. I HAVE to go back. Have to experience this more deeply. I want to camp. And hike. Take photographs. Make art. And I want to share this with you. The seeds of a workshop have been planted.

Now I just have to figure out the logistics.

And listen to da muse who was WAY inspired. Inspired enough to play with charcoal on a whole ‘nother level.

 

deepening 8

Primal # 1. Susan Lobb Porter. Charcoal on paper

 

Primal # 2 Susan Lobb Porter. Charcoal on paper

Primal # 2 Susan Lobb Porter. Charcoal on paper

You up for joining me? It will be quite the arty adventure! Promise, really. Pinky swear even.

As always, would love to hear what you have to say in the comments below.

xoxo

Perpetual Motion

She’s a newly turned 4 year old. The Energizer Bunny in a princess dress.

princess

There are no off buttons. None. Nada.

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I’ve been visiting for her birthday, cementing my place in her consciousness by being the one who wears princess dresses. Just. Like. Her.

I’ve done my best to keep up. 

bouncy house

We’ve jumped in the Bouncy House.

games

Played games.

whispers

Hidden from the world in the castle -that-is-a-tent.

And then, because it’s something grandmas do, I passed along my wisdom and taught her how to take photos with my iphone. Which she did. Often.

dancing

So she could take pictures of me.

I’ll be getting on a plane soon and going back home. Home to a husband, a couple of dogs, the horses and the cat. Going home to my job. To my studio. To-do lists. Marketing plans. To my life a couple thousand miles away from hers.

I’m going to miss her, oh how I’ll miss her. But I’ll be back. Got some more dancin’ to do.

 

Kickin’ Back

Ahhhhhh…. The boots are off.  The narrow toe, high heel cowboy boots that I wore ALL day TWO days  in a row…on concrete Are. Off.

My feet have died and gone to heaven, heaven in this case being the top of the coffee table. They are officially nekked, except for the thickest, fluffiest socks that make them feel truly loved. Truly. Beyond truly.

The 2013 Open Studios Tour is over.  Two weekends of welcoming the public into my workspace. Explaining what I do. Demonstrating. Talking about art. And life. And whatever direction the conversation leads us. Trust me, it went off in some crazy directions. Good crazy. And in between all of that, all that talking and demonstrating and hostessing, I sold some art.

And ate some chocolate. And was validated a hundred times over by people signing up for classes.

And looked two inches taller, twenty pounds lighter in those damn boots.

So now it’s officially exhale time. Five, ten minutes. Maybe a day. And then it’s time to put on the marketing hat and figure out what to do with all the remaining paintings, all fifty gazillion of them. 

And plan those classes!

Meanwhile, my best best BEST beloveds, remember this:

Love You THIS Much

Love You THIS Much

I love you THIS much! Mmmmmmmm-whaaaaa! (That was a BIG kiss)

Now go show your love and say something in the comments below. Smiley face here.

xoxoxo