Month: July 2024

Well, I made this painting, Tree of Joy, a little while back. After hanging it and studying it for a while, I came to realize the the sky was what I will eloquently call “icky”. It just didn’t work out. I wasn’t feeling it. Ya know? So, I glazed some cobalt blue over it. No, that didn’t work, either. Too dark. I scumbled some transparent mixing white over that. Yes, better… Another coat. Much better. I love it. It looks messy and yummy and so much better. What do you think?

Below is the old one. At the time that I was taking the photo, I couldn’t seem to get a good one. It was out of kilter and I just could not get it straight. Also, the light was off. The new photo, above is more true to the color of the original. It is hard to get a good photo that matches the original of any artwork.

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I said to the almond tree, ‘Friend, speak to me of God,’ and the almond tree blossomed. — Nikos Kazantzakis

This has been a stressful week, but, today, I received the good news that the CT scan must have been mistaken, because the second PET scan in a row has showed no cancer and my blood markers are fine. So, I am officially off the immunotherapy and no plans for a hysterectomy. I will be seeing the doctor in a month and taking another cancer marker blood test. If my numbers go up, I will restart the immunotherapy. Now, I just need to recover from the cure. LOL!

I posted this poem a while back, but thought it was appropriate to repost it now. It is based on Psalm 119:143-152.

Peace and Rest

Things may look bleak, dark, distressing,
All beyond our control,
But my delight in Your Law and Your Word
Lights the expanse of my soul.

Your Holy Word is eternal and sure,
Make me to know it and live.
I ask You, I beg You, I cry to You, Help
Me take of the hope that You give.

The world twists and tumbles around me,
Enmeshed in all wickedness.
But, with You, O Lord of hosts, my God
There is surely peace and rest.

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Thou hast made us for Thyself, O Lord; and our heart is restless until it rests in Thee. — Augustine

I have always wanted a Siamese cat. This is probably the only one I will ever have. LOL! It is pastel pencils on 8×10 black sanded paper.

Also, just some info. I recently had a CT scan and it showed a mass on my left ovary. My guess is that it is the original one that never totally went away. The PET scan I had in the first part of March did not show it, but, come to find out, it is not as accurate as a CT scan. I am scheduled for another PET scan on Monday and then probably a hysterectomy. In the meantime, I am on lots of medication dealing with side effects of the chemo that I am no longer taking and the immunotherapy that I am taking. Today, I am starting to get some nausea from the newest medications. Sigh… LOL! But, God is good! All the time!

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No matter how much cats fight, there always seem to be plenty of kittens. — Abraham Lincoln

Not just pleasantly, but beautifully plump. This is a little chunkster of a girl. She is the daughter of one of our elders at church and is a little over a year old.

This is graphite and white charcoal on a 9×12 sheet of gray sand-textured paper.

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A toddling little girl is a centre of common feeling which makes the most dissimilar people understand each other. — George Eliot

I am working on several things: art, sewing, piano lessons (got me a new keyboard — yay!), etc. Below is the beginning of a drawing from a photo I took while in church. This little girl was sitting on the floor staring at me. I got the phone out and when I was ready to take the picture (during the offering), she looked away. Oh, well. I think it is a cute picture, anyway.

Below is a two-page spread from my sketchbook which I did with wax-based pencils and sharpie. I am thinking that I will make a big one with acrylic paints on a 12×24 inch canvas that I have. I really like it.

Art does not need to make sense. It just has to be beautiful or meaningful or both. I think this is both. What do you think?

I am slowly (painfully slowly) making progress toward making myself a pair of “palazzo pants”. I love that the new style is wide leg pants. So, I am taking a pattern for pajama pants and making them even wider in the leg and using some heavy drapey fabric that I have had for a long, long time and going for it. LOL! We shall see what happens…

I will let you know when I get the date for my piano performance at the Von Braun Civic Center here in Huntsville. It may be a while. Patience, patience…

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Every time I see a piano, I have this urge to play it. — Margot Robbie