first things first

My camera has been missing for over a month. No rhyme nor reason - one morning I was using it and in the afternoon it was nowhere to be found. Since that day, the house has been turned upside down repeatedly, without success.

Yesterday the camera resurfaced. It was balanced in a little gap that mysteriously appeared between the cats' suitcase (a large and heavily weighted upright suitcase dedicated to claw sharpening) and the cedar wardrobe the suitcase is usually jammed right up against. I walk by this spot at least 20 times every day, and the camera has certainly not been there. Nor has there been a gap, since the suitcase doesn't move; it takes all my strength to drag it even a few inches. The whole thing is incomprehensible but the important thing is: the camera is back.

For me, the process of writing anything always starts with images rather than the other way around. With the ability to share images again, I expect blogging to resume shortly.

I've missed you, blog pals. Things have been a bit challenging here every single day since the upheaval beginning on April 4th. Challenging and exhausting. Time has seemed to stand still while simultaneously zipping by. There has been no time for writing or even reading. The only "extra" has been Daily Markmaking, and it's been a little moment of sanity every day.

So...it will probably take a while to catch up with you all, and I'm looking forward to it.

~~~~~

june

I'm actively adding something positive to June, by participating in #growjune on twitter. It's a monthly art challenge; people try to post a new piece each day, with either a certain theme (like #growjune) or in a particular medium (like #paintSeptember). Running a hashtag search instantly displays everything that has been posted each day. The results are varied and interesting!

It's just a fun way for people at any level to share work and encourage each other. If you feel like jumping in, let me know!

I may not manage to post something every day in #growjune - but I will try. It's very satisfying to look back and see seven or twelve or twenty-five pieces in a month.

Would you like to see my first effort for #growjune 2017? It's this ink and watercolor sketch of a section of Solomon's Plume. And that's my actual thumb at the bottom, not a super-realistic painting of my thumb ;)

~~~~~