One time I painted the Mineral King scene of Farewell Gap with the Crowley family cabin plein air. That was very difficult – the light and colors kept changing, people kept asking what I was doing (umm, skateboarding?), and I had to keep scooting out of the way of cars.
Painting Farewell Gap in Mineral King plein air in 2006
I don’t remember which one it was or how it turned out. I had only been painting a few months and thought that plein air painting was necessary to learning. It may have been, but mostly what I learned was how grateful I was to be a studio painter, working in a controlled and quiet environment from my photos.
Farewell Gap XIIIFarewell Gap with Crowley Cabin, 2013Farewell Gap XIV, 2013Farewell Gap in Autumn, 2013
Salt & Light, or Reading Rabbit, oil on board, 11×14″
Remember Reading Rabbit? He appears when I want to tell you about books I have recently read that I think are worth the time.
Having recently assisted an author with photo editing, copy editing, book design, printing and proofing, I am stunned that there are so many readable books in the world. The process from idea to real book is very very very difficult. It is now more accessible to the average bear, but it also means that the quality of books has diminished. There are unedited books, poorly edited books, poorly designed books, books with illegible photos, and even books with a “forward” instead of a FOREWORD. It’s enough to kill off any reading rabbit, for sure. See?
Okay, I’m done bloviating for now.
Recently I have learned from, enjoyed and finished these books:
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, Barbara Kingsolver. The author and her family decided to dedicate a year to eating local food only. Barbara is a fabulous novelist, so I will read almost anything she writes. This book also had excerpts from her daughter and her husband, and recipes. It was set up month by month so the reader could understand the seasonal efforts. What a ton of work, but very rewarding. Now I want to make my own mozzarella cheese!
The 188th Crybaby Brigade, Joel Chasnoff. Shortly after returning from Israel, I met a former Israeli soldier. He needed artwork, but I wasn’t the right person for the job so I sent him to someone better qualified. In spite of my not being the right artist for him, we had a great conversation, and he recommended this book to me. It was written by a friend of his, another American who served in the Israeli armed forces. What a fascinating read! And such fun to see an entire chapter titled “Tim Bailey”, the name of the man I met. This book will entertain you, worry you, and make you wonder how Israel has survived with its armed forces being made up of teenagers.
My To-Be-Read list continues to grow, much of it due to the website, Modern Mrs. Darcy. She has a weekly podcast called “WSIRN”, for What Should I Read Next. In it, she interviews someone about their reading preferences, saying, “List 3 books you love, 1 book you hate, and tell me what you are reading now”. Then she summarizes the books very succinctly and makes recommendations. Her blog is very well written, and one of my new favorites.
Here are Amazon links to the books listed here:
Never mind. I can’t remember how to do that, and I need to go work on the Sequoia/Kings Canyon coloring book.
Tomorrow is a Mineral King day on the blog. Y’all come back now!
I think everyone is normal until I get to know them.
I did a mental inventory of all the chairs in my house. (Is this weird? Never mind. Don’t answer that question.) As I moved from room to room, I realized that EVERY SINGLE CHAIR IN MY HOUSE is a salvage, a second-hand, a “sure, I’ll take that”.
A few weeks ago, Trail Guy and I were at a dump. (None of your beeswax, but thanks for your concern.) I saw a chair, and knew it was meant for me.
This is not the dump, in case you were wondering. Again, thank you for your concern.
It was a mess, but a classic shape, sturdy frame, and just what our green room needs. The green room is a little empty, and I’ve been thinking about what might be good in there. This chair is just what I had envisioned.
Empty-ish green room.
I chose fabric that I thought would suit the chair (a vague blurry bit of it is in the foreground of the photo above) and took a few photos of the chair.
When my favorite upholsterers received the photos, this was the response: “This is a 1950 vintage chair. very popular because of the great lines and comfort. We can repair the back leg or replace. With a new cushion you will have a beautiful chair.”
How beautiful? I almost choked when he named the price.
The senior upholsterer said that when it is finished, it would be worth $1200! I told him I couldn’t afford a chair of that quality or value. Remember, I find my chairs in the dump! (or yard sales,other people’s garages or thrift shops)
I thought about taking the chair back home again, but realized I’d have to unload it. Then I’d think about it for awhile, adjust to the price, make arrangements to load it and take it back to Visalia.
It is a mess, but can’t you see the possibilities here?
Weird? Or resourceful?
It is so satisfying to find something of potential value, to salvage and repair, to find completely unique things, to own items with a story, to enjoy things that are lasting, timeless, and classic.
The upholsterer said it would last 25 years. I thought, “IT HAD BETTER!!”
Uh, does anyone want to buy a coloring book? One hundred coloring books? Or how about an oil painting? A really large oil painting, perhaps?
I’m in a show soon at the Courthouse Gallery in Exeter. Bring your checkbook.
Every summer in Mineral King, Trail Guy goes on a quest for Leopard Lilies. They have a fabulous fragrance, and often we smell them before we see them.
Mineral King wildflowers are usually at their peak during the first couple of weeks in July. This year they are particularly profuse.
Groundsel is common. It is a little boring, except when there are great masses of it together. It always looks slightly worn out.Penstemmon comes in many colors and styles. This might be called “golden beard”. I wasn’t asked, but if I had been, I would call this one “lipstick”.No flowers here, but I can’t pass over this bridge without photographing the classic scene.“Wild geranium” makes no sense as a name, unless you know that what we call “geranium” at home is actually pelargonium, and true geraniums look more like this. Someone is jerking us around in this naming busines.Wild asters usually don’t appear until late August. They are more lavender than they appear in this photo.The larkspur were thick and bright, but my little PHD (press here, Dummy) camera wouldn’t focus on them. Where else will you see purple and yellow together and not think it is a little obnoxious?We (ahem – Trail Guy) always find artifacts in Mineral King, a place very rich in cultural history. This is part of an old stove. Apparently, people in the olden days thought nothing of walking away from their stuff. Don’t know about you, but I’ve never removed a stove part, much less left it lying around. Maybe these folks would have been Lawn Parkers if they were in a more modern era.Rein orchis is a weird weird name. “Orchis” not “orchid”. “Rein” not “rain”. You just can’t make this stuff up, unless you are an Official Flower Namer. They get to do whatever they want. I used to think grown-ups got to do whatever they wanted, but maybe not, unless they are Flower Namers.Somewhere in there is a Leopard Lily. We spotted it!“We”? Nope, Trail Guy spotted it!Then he stuck his nose in it.This is a boring photo. In real life it was sparkly white flowers and a few bright purplish-pink wild onions.More sparkly white “knot weed”, which looks like a Nothing Burger in this photo. Guess you had to be there.This unnamed and unknown (to me) flower is thick along the Mineral King Road, maybe around 5000′. This was one of the first times I found it near a turnout, when no one else was around so I could really appreciate it. Besides, it wasn’t 100 degrees out, so I didn’t mind stopping.Look how thick this is here! Anyone know the name of this? How about “roadside blue”? I want to be a Flower Namer!
. . . can you see what a privilege it is to live in this country?
Israel is about the size of New Jersey. They are an amazing country, surviving and thriving in a hostile place. I saw a tee shirt there that read “Don’t worry, America. Israel has your back.”
This is an unusual post, for an unusual circumstance. Someone named Tina ordered a calendar but did not provide her mailing address.
Her email address was provided from Paypal, but there was no physical address or P.O. box # provided so that I could mail her a calendar.
I emailed her twice, and didn’t hear back. This probably means that my email landed in her spam folder.
She emailed me asking where her calendar was, but still did not provide a mailing address. I replied, but am thinking that may have also landed in a spam folder.
So, this blog post is an attempt to locate Tina!
Tina, I hope you are reading this! If you are, please use the contact button again, and this time include your mailing address. I really want to send you your calendar!!
It took a few weeks to gather the courage, but I finally drove past the Kaweah Post Office. You may need to avert your eyes – it is dismal and sad.
Forgive me for such ugliness on this blog.
Let me atone for this indignity by sharing some good news about the Kaweah Post Office.
The eBay auction, the commission for Chuck, the sale of another painting of the post office, and several generous donations have produced. . .
rap a tap a rap a tap a rap a tap a rap a tap a rap a tap a rap a tap a rap a tap a rap a tap a rap a tap
(That was a drum roll, in case you were wondering.)
$2050!
This is a HUGE dent in the $3000 insurance deductible that the owner of the post office has to come up with for the repairs.
You people are CRAZY GENEROUS AND AWESOME! THANK YOU!!
(I used my favorite color of teal for that sentence to express my appreciation.)
Tomorrow I will further atone for the offensive photo above by showing you the 3 oil paintings of the Kaweah Post Office when it was whole and surrounded by greenery.
P.S. I keep repeating Kaweah Post Office so that Mr. Google can help people find it when they are seeking updates about our beloved Three Rivers landmark.
