here

it is a sleepy monday. every one is in bed, warm and dreaming on their extra day off. the sun is up and bright. a good day for outdoor painting. but inga and i must go obey The Almighty Jog before getting wrapped up in anything else. lately, the canvas has held on to me for a straight 6 hours at a minimum. and once i start, i don't stop. today, we must go bounce through the green before anything else.

we didn't get out much this weekend and we both need the sweat. we were too busy hiding from the onslaught: our little town was chewed up by wine-hungry tourists this weekend. there is no doubt in my mind that a few new roadside memorials will be up soon. the sirens were going almost constantly for the past 3 days. this is where people come to drink and laugh and drive fast down the windy two-lane highways, pretending it's the french countryside, all fantasy and reverie. the reality of it is that this is the land of alcoholism and brutal car crashes, decapitations and mothers in mourning. not to mention the deep level of unnoticed (or shunned) poverty. there are small, white, handmade crosses around almost every bend in the road. little trinkets nestled at the base, signs, love letters, stuffed animals, and balloons. on big drinking weekends like memorial day and st. patrick's day, these crosses multiply. silently and in the middle of the night.

moving here has cured me of the everyday american alcoholism that tv promotes. i haven't had a drink in 9 months and i don't miss it. the allure is gone. i sleep better now than i have in years and i have such a high level of focus too. i have become a teetotaler. ha! much to the amazement of a great many friends.

maybe i should photograph them. the crosses. i always want to stop when i see them. to pay attention. to pay respect. these small shrines that mark a site of horrible loss have always caught my eye and heart. it makes me even sadder when they fall in to disrepair or are removed by whatever state agency is in charge of removing such things.

art and wine...

good morning! i've been working on the new maid portrait since about 6:30 and my painting arm is a little tired. :) but i'll suffer through it. i'm really exited about creating a new body of work around this image. and there are a lot of things coming up this summer that i need to be prepared for (more about that later) so i've really gotta pick up the pace on my production... at least as much as my process will allow without becoming a one-woman art-factory. i'm just having so much fun in my little studio lately. my canvasses are last thing i think about at night when i crawl in to bed and the very first thing on my mind when i wake up. i'm on the right track and it's nice.

and speaking of nice... i had such a wonderful time at the wine-tastings we went to yesterday! we went to three different wineries, drank chardonnay out of the tanks, ate strong cheese, and were pretty giggly by the end of it. it was wonderful and i had so much fun! the only down side to drinking wine in the middle of the day though is that by 4:30 in the afternoon i was so drained and tired that i wasn't good for much for the rest of the evening. but magically, i have not even a hint of a headache and was awake and ready for the day at 5:30 this morning. if you find yourself out and about in wine-country, go to the tastings. and a special thanks to Lin at Venge for showing us such hospitality and being so generous and sweet. :)

at home...

another great day today guys! that's like... 14 good days in a row now. ever since the new year arrived i've just been feeling at the top of my game, hopeful, driven, and happy.

i shipped the embroidered territories off to chicago today (YAY!), went for a nice long hike in the vineyards outside calistoga, and spent the last 2 or so hours working on the new painting. it's really coming along quite nicely. so nicely, in fact, that the fear of messing up has kicked in... which isn't really a good thing. you tend not to take risks and make discoveries when you get too precious about whatever it is you're working on. at least i do. i'm just gonna have to shrug it off and keep going.

i also got these super sweet and creepy broken porcelain dolls i ordered in the mail today:


(photo courtesy of FOUNDLINGS)

they are so precious! instant keepsakes! i got them from FOUNDLINGS if you're interested in getting yourself something along these lines. shelley, the sweetheart who runs the shop, is so kind and shipped these to me so quickly. her shop is full of strange things and she's got a wonderful eye for romantic objects with a history.

i also listed a few new pieces at little black fences, my shop. its really starting to pull together. the shop is curated pretty well and is heading in a direction that i'm kinda proud of. and with 28 or so pieces in the inventory, i think i'm pretty well stocked. let me know what you think. critique is always welcome.

i'm gonna head back in to the studio for a bit more painting before i curl up with my book and my man-piece.

hope everyone is safe and feeling happy.

angela