Three Rivers got 9″ of rain in 10 days. This is phenomenal! We walked to the Dinely Bridge several times to check out the river.
I can’t remember how many storms – one big one? a wave of storms? The early ones were warm and the river was very exciting.
See that white stick on the lower left? It shows the depth of the river. I’m not sure the water even reached the stick last winter. In these storms, the stick washed away.
Looking downstream, Kaweah River middle fork, from the Dinely bridge.Looking upstream. St. Anthony Retreat Center is the group of white buildings with red roofs in the distance.Looking downstream again. Either the stick is buried or it is washed away. See the little rocks sticking up on the distant ridge? Stay tuned.Looking upstream on the Dinely Road side of the river.Looking upstream on the highway side of the river.Where is that measuring stick?
Okay, now for those rocks in the distance. They are called “Comb Rocks”, either because they look like a rooster’s comb or because someone named Mr. Comb (or Combs?) owned them. I don’t know.
What I do know is that my walking buddy said to me one morning, “Turn your head sideways and look at those rocks. Whose profile does that resemble?”
Those year end newsletters are good for updates, and they make everyone else’s life seem so sparkly, happy and fun, just like Facebook (Nope, not on, and not going to join). Life is a balance of both good and bad things, but who wants to put the sad, bad and hard stuff in a newsletter?
Here is some of what I remember about 2016, but not all of it. I want my life to look sparkly, happy and fun too, but realistic. The list could be longer, but I want you to stay for the photos at the end.
Personally:
Lost neighbors on three sides, all for different reasons (We aren’t lawn-parkers, don’t have barking dogs, don’t have loud parties or lights that stay on all night – what’s the deal??)
Lost Perkins, the kindest-hearted cat of 17 years, and gained Samson, the fiercest little feline I’ve ever met
Visited Israel (still in shock – did this really happen??)
Took very long road trip – Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Nevada
Hit 30 years in the marriage department
Walked the Lake Tahoe Marathon
Professionally:
Edited a novel
Edited, designed and published Trail of Promises
Painted 5 murals (2 in someone’s Events Room and 3 in the Three Rivers Museum)
Designed and published 4.9 coloring books (#5 is completed but not printed yet, waiting customer approval)
Did all the other normal work stuff – lessons, oil painting workshops, speaking to groups, oil painting, pencil drawing, blogging, bazaars/festivals/boutiques/shows
Received an award, Women in the Arts, from the DAR (Not sure why, but appreciative all the same!)
Sweet Perkins
Somewhere in Idaho
T and I were cold, excited and ready for our 1/2 marathon in Lake TahoeA long bridge into Sandpont, IdahoBridges, always bridges. . . what is it with the Central California artist and bridges? The answer is that a bridge picture is the perfect combination of scenery and architecture. This one is in Oregon, not in Central California. I don’t know if California has any covered bridges except for one in Wawona near Yosemite.
SamsonMineral King mural in Three Rivers Museum of Empire Mt. mining area.2 more murals in the Mineral King Room of the Three Rivers MuseumTake that, 2016!
Thank you, dear blog readers, for sticking with me through 2016.
Happy New Year!
P.S. Am I always standing by people I love with my arm thrown over their shoulders?? Nope. Couldn’t stand to be touched in Israel because it was always too hot.
What is this? Inquiring minds NEED to know. . . we got a pair of insulating mugs for Christmas, and got curious as to which sort of mug will keep coffee the hottest. So, we conducted an experiment. They were all within degrees of one another, with the short Starbuck’s mug in the middle slightly ahead. Trail Guy is a little bit sad that his special old mug from Cabela’s with its hand-carved wooden handle didn’t win.
Subject #6
On Boxing Day, as December 26 is known in England, Trail Guy and I drove down to Lake Kaweah (AKA “The Lake”) to take a walk. This is an interesting place to spend time when the water level is low. There are great views of Alta Peak, lots of birds, an old road to walk on, a bridge or two to cross, cockleburrs to pick out of your socks, rocks to contemplate, the river (Kaweah) to watch, mud to slide around on, and people’s undisciplined dogs to fend off.
This deserves no photos. On Christmas Eve it was raining and dark when we got home from our church’s Christmas Eve service. Trail Guy pressed the button on the garage door opener (my favorite luxury item) and nothing happened. He pressed it again, the door went up a little bit, then it thudded back down with an uncharacteristic loud clunk.
Say what? My car is in there! The pickup is out here! What’s the deal?
A spring broke. It was very important. It took an hour with lots of banging, grunting, and possibly some swearing although no one here is going to admit to even knowing those words, and now the garage door is neatly folded in a pile in our front yard.
Here – look at the new green chair and feel better. I wonder how long it will take to find the right lamp table. . . will we go dumpster diving? curbside shopping? garage saling?
Subject #4
On Christmas Day we had 2 very dear friends join us for lunch along with my mama. It was a perfect day for a post-lunch walk.
Nothing to say except a good time was had by all, and the Central California artist probably ought to make a New Year’s resolution to give up sweets.
Want to know what keeps a Central California artist busy?
I like lists. Have a look at what I’m working on this week. Notice there is nothing on it about actually making art. This is what I refer to as “The Business of Art” or an “Administrative” week.
Preparing to give a presentation to the Daughters of the American Revolution next week. Why did they ask me? What do they want to hear? More will be revealed in the fullness of time.
Putting away all the stuff from doing weekend bazaars, boutiques and fairs. This usually results in a big clean-out. Why do I still have this, that and the other thing?
Gathering up, scanning and identifying old photos from Mineral King for a video to go on the Mineral King page of Tulare County Treasures. Why me? Because I deal in images, and Mineral King is my strongest subject. When you are able to help someone, it is good to say yes.
Teaching the oil painting workshop
Packaging note cards. Who writes cards? Apparently lots of people still do, because I ran out of this design and the reorder came this week.
This is the Thank You Acorn card. 4 cards and envelopes, blank inside, $7 includes tax. Email me if you would like some, or order through the website – under For Sale, click on Note Cards
Maybe today I will be able to plan for the next mural, the next oil commission, the next oil paintings to restock my inventory, the next blog post, the next coloring book.
That’s right! I was going to tell you about the new coloring book.
Stay tuned. More will be revealed in the fullness of time.
This Central California artist is never bored. Boring, maybe but never bored.
There is some term to describe what happens when people buy new pillows for their couches, and end up having to remodel the entire house. You know how it goes – new pillows make the couch look shabby, so a new couch is necessary. Then the rest of the furniture looks terrible and has to be replaced. This precipitates a paint job for the living room, which leads to needing new windows for the entire house, which becomes a project of knocking down walls and adding on rooms.
I got that new floor in my studio, and suddenly the mural on the front door didn’t suit me any more. It might have been there for 10 years, and certainly I can paint better now. Instead of refreshing it, I am replacing it.
This is how it looked before I started. You’d think I’d paint the outside of the building or re-side it or something. First I need to remember the name of that syndrome for why one should never buy new pillows.First, a new sky and a blue line down the middle.Next, a new mountain and blocking in of the next main spaces. The space to the right of the blue line is still the old mural.Sorry, Samson, you don’t get to help, and chewing on paintbrushes is forbidden.The blue line was the edge of this juniper tree. Now that everything is blocked in, I can begin details, if my brushes haven’t been chewed up by Samson.Yes, I’m talking about you, little destructive feline.Some detail is now added to the mountain and the juniper.And a bit more to the background, trees, shrubs, and ground.
The daylight was fading, so I quit for the day. It might be February before I get back to it.
An artist friend shared her donation policy with me. I retyped it to apply to me.
It has worked for my friend, but not one single organization has ever taken me up on this. However, the requests have certainly tapered off since adopting this policy.
In case you are wondering if I am a complete curmudgeon, let it be known that I do donate occasionally, simply because I want to support a particular organization or two.
These are thoughts first published on my blog on November 13, 2013
Pencil drawing of a bridge over the St. John’s River in Tulare County. Perhaps today it is a bridge over the troubled waters of donation requests.
1. Some of those “beg-athon” events are really fun for the community and anticipated with happiness.
2. I’m not the only artist who is worn out from being asked to give away my work.
3. Artists can request that bidding begin at a minimum price, which will help them maintain some dignity and their work to retain its value.
4. Should other donors be paid for their contributions, such as hair salons, motels, restaurants, retail stores?
5. Does donating help their businesses?
6. Are they able to write off anything on their taxes?
7. Are they tired of being asked too?
8. Is there another way to raise money for good causes instead of through donations and auctions?
9. Is it possible for the non-profit to say “We’ll pass on that donation because it doesn’t represent you well and it won’t bring in money for us”?
10. Some members of the public sincerely anticipate a piece of art from their favorite artists, and it causes them to want to participate in the auctions.
Tomorrow I will share a letter from an artist friend that she sends to organizations that request donations.
P.S. Here are some photos from Saturday’s bazaar. It was a very good day!
My 10×10′ piece of real estate for the day.Before the show, some of the vendors check out each other’s booths.Before the show, I like to enjoy the temporary quiet.There was about a two minute lull between visitors, and I enjoyed this view out of my very large window.
This is a reprint from November 6, 2013. Clearly the subject of donations is large in my thoughts during November.
Pencil drawing of bridge over the Tule River in Tulare County. Today, perhaps it is a bridge over the troubled waters of donation requests.
When non-profits want to raise funds, they hold dinners or tastings and have silent and live auctions to go with these events (called “Annual Beg-athons” by author Matt Gleason in the Huffington Post on 6/8/11). Typically, the first people they contact to donate items to their causes are artists.
Why artists? Why not dentists, lawyers, gas stations, pharmacists??
There was a year that I donated more than I sold. (Hmmm, someone might possibly benefit from a business manager here. . .) The next year, I began reading what other artists had to say about the matter, and as a result, I developed my own list of reasons for artists to not donate and a few for them to continue donating.
REASONS TO NOT DONATE:
1. An artist is only allowed to write off the cost of the materials.
2. Donating depletes inventory that is usually made by hand, involving enormous amounts of time.
3. Art work at these events usually sells for less than its full value.
4. If an artist develops a reputation for giving away work, those who previously have paid full price feel ripped off.
5. If an artist develops a reputation for giving away work, the buying public may begin waiting for the events instead of spending money with the artist.
6. If an artist gets tired of donating, she may begin donating second-rate work and damage her reputation. An artist friend once told me, “Just give them your bad stuff that won’t sell anyway.” Yikes, is that what is happening?? That’s not good for the organization, the artist’s reputation or the recipient!
REASONS TO DONATE (and some are pretty poor reasons):
1. An artist loves the cause and want to help.
2. An artist wants to reduce inventory.
3. An artist wants exposure (which is a myth in terms of building a business.)
4. An artist feels guilty and wants to “give back”. (What did he take in the first place??)
If you are part of a non-profit, you might rethink this common idea that artists are the best ones to approach for donations.
Here is an idea for non-profits: Ask to buy the work. The artist can sell it to you at a discount, you can write off what your organization spends, and you can begin the bidding at that price. Anything you receive above that will be profit for you, and none of the Reasons To Not Donate will happen.
Finally, here is a letter I’ve borrowed from New York Times writer Tim Kreider on the subject:
“Thanks very much for your compliments on my art. I’m flattered by your invitation to donate a painting or drawing or print or package of cards or to paint a mural. But art is work, it takes time, it’s how I make my living, and I can’t afford to do it for free. I’m sorry to decline, but thanks again, sincerely, for your kind words about my work.”
Somewhere recently I heard that it is a “subscription economy” we are in now, rather than a “membership economy”.
Several of the computer programs I use no longer just sell the program. Instead, they sell a subscription that is either paid monthly or yearly. So, I bought outdated versions, because my internet service isn’t dependable enough. I need the thing to be on my computer, not out there on the World Wide Web. And, I don’t need any more monthly expenses.
Then I got thinking about memberships to stores: I quit Costco because it bothered me to pay to shop (and a couple of other reasons.) But, I joined Amazon Prime for free shipping, because I don’t have to drive down the hill using up gas and time and adding miles to my car.
Lots of free internet services offer premium versions and upgrades. I don’t pay for the premium version of this blog platform because this one works. It already costs me about $500 a year to pay someone to keep it up to date.
I don’t pay for an upgraded version of LinkedIn. I enjoy reading their articles and finding links to good articles online but it isn’t a great use of my time.
Someone far wiser than I (Greg McKeown, author of Essentialism and The Disciplined Pursuit of Less) suggests that when you have to decide whether or not to pay for something that used to be free, think about it this way: “What would I pay to get this if I didn’t have it?”
The business of art requires continual decisions. Choices and consequences, choices and consequences.
What shall I do?? Join? Not join? Subscribe? Become a member?There. Take that, subscriptions. Guess I showed them.
