This post is just general photos of the cabins, some so you can see the settings, some so you can just enjoy them in all their rustic simplicity.
This isn’t a cabin—it is someone’s outbuilding.
P.S. I can draw your cabin because. . .
. . . using pencils, oil paints, and murals, I make art you can understand, of places and things you love, for prices that won’t scare you.
Recently while stuck inside on a very rainy day at the cabin, Trail Guy had to replace the batteries in the radio. That erased the saved stations, and as he was resetting them, he found two classic rock and one classic country station. We entertained ourselves for an evening by hopping around among the three stations, and I was shocked, “SHOCKED”, I say, to realize how many voices, introductions, and songs I not only recognized, but could sing (poorly) to.
I forgot how much I used to (and apparently still do) love country music. I don’t like the really old stuff and don’t know the new stuff, but the tunes from the ’70s and ’80s float my boat.
When we got home, I dug out a stack of my old CDs*, put them in my stereo (yeah, it is probably “old” too), and started painting while singing (poorly). Doesn’t this seem like an appropriate painting for country music? Here is the progression:
This is from a photo on top of Rocky Hill. At this time of writing, it is untitled.
*Steve Wariner (my absolute forever favorite), Emmy Lou Harris, Suzy Bogguss, Collin Raye, and Skip Ewing. (Only Steve Wariner showed up when Trail Guy and I were playing “Name That Tune”).
And you might be wondering about this: In the category of country, Trail Guy usually guessed Hank Williams Sr. or Johnny Cash, but he excelled at the rock station, whereas I thought most of those songs sounded alike with repetitious screaming guitars and scratchy yelling voices. (They didn’t play Toto or Little River Band, but they did play one Kansas—I love those tight harmonies.)
Once again, we interrupt our broadcast for this drawing.
Ever notice the annoyance of the English language, where a noun and a verb can be exactly the same word? And I didn’t actually mean “broadcast”, because we are in a series of posts about cabin life. This drawing fits the category of cabin life but it isn’t about cabin life; it’s about pencil drawing.
Get on with it, will ya??
An old friend (that seems to be where most of my work comes from, but new friends and young friends are welcome to commission me; even friends I haven’t met yet are welcome here) expressed an interest in a drawing from The Cabins of Wilsonia.
Alas, it was gone.
We had a few options: 1. Oh well, sorry; 2. Buy another book, Sir, and rip out the page; 3. I can draw it for you again.
My wise friend chose option #3.
Have a look at the original photo that I used.
As always, working from a photo isn’t straightforward copying. Every photo has its indiscernible parts, because real life is messy.
Because my friend was wanting the drawing from the book, I used that old drawing to help me make decisions. (I didn’t lie: although the original is gone, it’s still on my laptop.)
Then, I thought about it a bit more and decided that I ought to be able to do a better job now. That was 10 years ago, and I was cranking out those 272 (was that really the number??) drawings at a rapid pace. This time, there was no deadline. My friend’s only requirement was specific dimensions to go with another drawing, like a matched set.
Here is the other drawing.
And here is its new partner.
(The difference in darkness has something to do with the computer reproduction, not a change in pencils or pressure on the paper.)
This picnic table appears in the chapter called “Brewer”, which is the name of the road in Wilsonia depicted in that chapter. (I got clever that way.) The funny part is that I could not remember where this photo actually was, and I just put it on Brewer because I thought it looked good with the chaise lounge.
Apparently my friend thought the same. He has actually had a strong influence over my art career, so this makes sense.
Thank you, DB!
Last post, we looked at a few cabin exterior details. Today, we will snoop inside a few cabins.
I feel less free taking interior photos of other people’s cabins than I do taking exterior shots. But, I manage to sneak in a few shots here and there.
Most people are very curious about other people’s cabins, and always interested in seeing the interiors.
All of the cabins in Mineral King are visible to the public, but this doesn’t mean the owners are known. We have cabin numbers and names, but the names aren’t always indicative of the occupants. Because this is the World Wide Web, I have tried to shield my own cabin from too much exposure. Likewise, I won’t be giving away any names here, just showing you a few of the exterior details in today’s post.
Clearly, I have a thing for chairs, doors and windows.
Recently I told an old friend that I have no commissions. He said, “I have one for you”. Many years ago he bought a couple of Mineral King paintings from me. One was when I was very new to painting, and according to Friend, I was reluctant to accept his hard-earned dollars for it. He wanted me to paint the two again, so he could see the difference.
After he sent me a photo of the two paintings on his Mineral King wall, I asked if he wanted one or both, and what sizes. He chose one, a 6×6″, and it is the newer of the two paintings. However, it is still before I kept good records of completed work. (I started oil painting on March 8, 2006. Yes, I remember the date.)
This is his photo:
I looked through my files of completed oil paintings, and holy guacamole, look how many paintings of this scene I have in my records!
This is the first one, probably from 2006 or 2007, when I was still painting on boards rather than wasting canvas.
This is from 2010.
2013
2014
I found two photos to help me get this right.
Ugh. It’s hot and the swamp cooler is roaring, and I want lunch. There is no deadline, so I will paint slowly with many corrective layers.
Done.
Now, we return to our regular broadcast, a series called “Cabin Life”.
Most cabin folks are patriotic. It is a regular practice to put out an American flag when one’s cabin is occupied. I can think of only one cabin without a flag at all, along with three cabins that only fly a California flag. (WHY??)
It would be tempting to segue into an entire post about patriotism, or the lack of it. I will restrain myself.
Instead, just enjoy these displays.(You may stand if you’d like, or even place your hand over your heart.)
Glory, hallelujah!
. . . but it ain’t all bad. (Cabin Life series resumes tomorrow.)
Happy Birthday, 40-year-old Niece!!
The little bitty almost inedible grapes are ripening, and THE DEER AREN’T EATING THEM! (Thank you, Deer Out!) If they survive, and if my juicer works after last year’s lengthy repair, I will juice and freeze them.
But Deer Out is also keeping them from licking my kitchen window clean, not that they have ever done that.
August is usually very hot. That’s why these flowers are naked ladies; too hot to be clothed.
Tucker’s wound has healed, and he loves the unmowed grass, which is the thickest and healthiest it has ever been. This is the 4th year of not allowing Trail Guy to mow it in order to let it propagate and send deeper roots (he isn’t complaining).
The cucumber plants died, the zucchini will flower but not produce, the tomatoes are weak (but the plumber shared some of his), the sweet potato plants are looking healthy, and the basil is prolific.
This involuntary sabbatical has been enjoyable. I am not worried, because God is my provider, not me.
After not drawing or painting for awhile, I got another wild hair to draw.
First, I warmed up by sketching in church. (Judge not: it helps me listen with my left brain when I keep my hands and right brain occupied.)
Then, I was ready to draw “Valedictorian’s Dad”.
Finally, I began three new paintings. 
Don’t they look terrible?
No worries. That’s normal.
One of my favorite bloggers had a great post yesterday: Tim Cotton Writes
We have looked at propane refrigerators and woodstoves for cooking. Many cabins have propane stoves with ovens, or perhaps a combination of wood/propane. Our oven would take half the forest, all day, and cook us right out of the kitchen while we tended to something inside, rotating every 5 or 10 minutes, and occasionally blowing ashes off the food.
How do I know this? Experience.
(Wow, do we ever miss Ted something fierce. . . sigh.)
I have learned to make English muffins on the stove top.
And, Trail Guy barbecues most of our dinners. Our favorite menu item is pizza on the Weber kettle barbecue.
Amazing what comes out of our one-butt kitchen without electricty.
Almost everyone with a cabin stops by our place to say hello. Some don’t pay attention to the fact that the front door is closed with a Do Not Disturb sign on the knob. (Trail Guy is known for his naps, but not apparently well-enough known.)
Cabin friendships develop over generations, summer after summer, year after year. Some of our cabin neighbors have become our closest friends. We look out for each other, and communicate throughout the year, particularly during crises such as wildfires, floods, collapsed cabins, snow slides, sinkholes, and washed out roads.
This neighbor thrives on greeting the public as they pass by. I think he might be bored this year.
Here are unidentified friends and neighbors. (If you hate finding your picture here, email me and I will delete it.)
Ouch. Lots of friends shown here who are now gone. Better enjoy the ones remaining, because time is short.