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I found these old watercolor sketches from six years ago and thought they would be nice to use in a children’s story. Some small character needing to make boats. They were assembled with spare bits of Nature in my studio and then a bit of imagination to get them into active, floating positions.

So I came up with a ship wrecked rat named Scrabble. It is, or will be a story of how he survives and makes a new home on the shores of Tasmania in 1792. All he wants to do is build a boat and go back out to sea. Some of these boats will be ideas for what he builds with the help of new friends on shore.

So first the sketching…how does one draw a rat in distress!

Naturally my rat will be saved by a floating bit of wine (port) box. With some perilous encounters he will make it to shore….but just barely.

He will meet new friends there…among them, a wallaby, an echidna, a wombat, a native hen and a brushtail possum. So far I have been playing with sketching some of them.

Do you have any idea how long you can spend adding fur to an animal? Anyway, my inspiration is, of course, Beatrix Potter. She had to draw and paint her characters for her stories in the sizes they would appear in her very small books. I won’t have to be so fussy with each hair but it is a good idea to understand how it grows and shadows on the body of such animals.

Beatrix Potter used only pencil, watercolor and pen. The latter mostly to help separate her characters from the backgrounds. I have very little practice with using a pen….it is so permanent once it hits the page!

Anyway I am going to see this idea through and will post pictures when I have something worth seeing.

I am still working on the short story about Joey, the librarian. And will get back to him and his new friend while sitting with my Manhattan and legal pad at the bar in about two hours.

The holidays were wonderful. Such lovely gifts…thank you Claudia for the amazing scarf you picked out on your recent trip to Australia and to Madeleine for sending those lovely Eucalyptus coasters all the way from there. You have been very kind over the last few years since I left Australia. A country always in the back of my mind…always with me….as are my students who continue to inspire me.

The poetry meeting is this week and I have a couple of new ones to try out on them.

More later…I need to go to the store to pick up some ingredients for a winter sangria. If it is any good, I will share the recipe.

Til later…

The view through the front door from inside. And then outside greeting guests after dark.

Amy, Patrick and Marla all came in his truck (as usual) with loads of presents and assorted foods and wines. We walked first to the river here after beautiful skies in the early morning.

And the view from the house they stayed in around the corner from my house.

The river…

The Riverwalk in Murphy with a warm-up at the Rare Bird for lattes afterwards.  Patrick and Amy further down the path….

Another day we walked the dam…

We enjoyed the company coming to visit while Amy, Patrick and Marla were in town. Lots of wine to go through…. And we did our traditional toast to Pacia with her drink of choice (Fresca and very cheap whiskey). It is served with popcorn and we do this every time to remember our dear old friend who almost made it to 100 years of age. She is one of the first to come to our Spirits Bar and spend some time remembering. This year Lee joined us…

We played new board games but did not do the puzzle I bought…I will do that one another time.

The evening they were all arriving back home in Michigan, I went for a walk around the neighborhood and stopped for a wine just before catching this sunset on my way home.

Today I went to the grocery store and picked up the two foods that are supposed to bring good luck if eaten on the first day of the year.

Just noticed these are mustard greens instead of collards….yikes! now I have to go back tomorrow and buy a can of those.

I wish you all a happy new year and can not express all the gratitude for how you have kept in touch with emails, cards, and gifts. Thank you so much.

I will be spending more time writing and show you my thoughts for another children’s book in my next post.

Til later…..

 

Every year one of Mary Jo’s friends makes her this gnome for outside her mailing business and coffee shop where I go five days a week. He is cleverly done, don’t you think? I decided to fuss up my entry way to the house and headed back to the shop in town to add more bits of artificial greens and lights so someone can find their way in after dark.

I will take a photo of it tonight when it gets dark. A neighborhood party had to be canceled tonight due to the flu so I have asked a couple of friends from this end to pop in for wine and meet the young couple from the opposite end. I don’t want to waste these spurts of socialization that surprise me every now and again.

I have spent the day finishing off sewing three pairs of pants, cleaning up and then baking Christmas cookies. Since I am way overdue for a blog post, I thought I’d better get to it. There is just not much new here. Amy, Patrick and Marla arrive Wednesday evening. I will have a cream of mushroom soup ready for them…and a crusty bread, I think.  It will require another trip to the store. Here is what I parked next to the other day…..constant reminder of how low the IQ has fallen here in the States.

I went to poetry meeting last week and had a successful read. I keep thinking they will make corrections or suggestions on my work. But the poet who heads the group called to tell me that my work needs no changes and to please keep it up. I will spend most of the winter writing so as to publish another book next summer. A friend in England bought several of my books for Christmas presents. Other than those buying Burke and Wills and the Stoat Story for grandchildren, I am not being told about purchases or reviews. I should probably go on Amazon to see.

First I need to take a walk…

Very little sleep last night with sore rotary cuff. My new neighbor (physical therapist) gave me some sensible exercises to help until I can lift dumbbells at the gym again. He told me that several women my age can not lift arms overhead. No problem here…just do not want to lift dumb bells that high. Not now anyway.

That’s it for today…Here is Sadie keeping me settled.

More later…