Remembering my Mom, on Mother's Day. Though I was young when I lost you, your spirit is still with me...

Getting Creative in the Yard!

Spring has sprung and my mind is reeling with ideas for my flower gardening play. As soon as the seed and plant catalogs start arriving in the mail I begin my creative daydreaming...drawing plans, making lists, researching and then imagining the fabulous results. When the weather is warm enough, I start relaxing on the lawn...staring...at each section of the beds...making my frivolous ideas come to life in my head.

In the middle of weeding (which I should have done last fall) I stop, settle into a semi-comfortable position in the crabgrass and stare. The neighbors probably think I have fits of catatonic eschemic attacks. Then one day, poof! All those ideas are discarded with one fleeting thought of a new vision that completely changes everything. And I start all over again.

Since seeding your own plants is much less expensive than buying grown plants to set and sooo much more satisfying. I diligently shop for all the best supplies and carefully take over any area in the house near enough to a window to receive at least some natural light and fill them with the trays of seed pots. Throwing any items that occupied the space before into a corner, for now.

Each day as I prepare to water and turn the fragile seedlings so that they grow straight and strong, I take one look at them and start thinking how beautiful they will be in the garden and begin wandering off into my creative daydreaming again. Forgetting the reason I went to them in the first place. Soon the precious sprouts are shrinking to withering heights.

I eventually abandon them all together, thinking that they will be alright until I tend to them later after my impromptu trip to the local nursery. Of course the greenhouses filled with healthy thriving plants fill your senses with gardener's delight. (Of course I have such a hard time producing seedlings, I need a greenhouse!) and (Of course I can't resist buying tons of setting plants much too early, or they will all be gone!) I take them home, thinking they will be fine until I get the beds ready for planting, once I get those damnable weeds plucked out.

Finally, the beds are ready to plant! Oh dear, some of these plants have not done so well, I guess I forgot to water them for a few days...oh my goodness, these ones are not even salvageable, well, they are a weaker variety...Fine, I'll just stick the ones that survived in the ground and buy a few replacements. By then, the plants at the nursery are few and far between, overgrown and root bound. No problem, they just need a little tender care, and since the type I wanted are all sold out I'll just have to update my garden plans a little...again...

Once the remaining plants are in the ground and nature takes over, all is fine. Ahhhh, my yard is especially beautiful this year. All that creative thinking really paid off! Just have to mow the lawn 'once in awhile' and do 'a little' weeding. Oh, and then there's the herb garden to attack, and the tomato patch hasn't been watered in days and the weather has been awful dry. . .

Just put a new, more visable, link to this blog on my MySpace profile. Look for image above if you go to MySpace Profile, to get back to this blog. Thanks!

Comments - Graphics - Layouts - Photobucket

Twitter-Pated

Just discovered that you can post pics on Twitter now... great for getting your Art seen... and fun too! Got 18 hits in 10 min.

'Seashell Birdbath' original photograph by RLHall all rights reserved.

The greatest happiness you can have is knowing that you do not necessarily require happiness. ~William Saroyan

Ahhhhh...the sun is shining once again! THAT makes me Happy!!!!

Went Fossil hunting in Pennsylvania today, snapped this pic on the way... I always look at this tree when I pass by, though it is far up in a field behind a long abandoned house. Now that I zoomed in on it I see that there is an old wooden box of some type (a birdhouse, or part of an ancient treehouse??) in the crotch of the tree - someone else must have loved this tree too :-)

News

"The Bird Show" in the Spotlight Gallery @ The ARTS
Thursday, April 02, 2009
Exhibit of Works Depicting Birds to Open in Corning

The Bird Show: an exhibition of small works depicting birds will open in Corning on Thursday, April 2. The exhibit will feature drawings, mixed media works, paintings and photography from 34 regional artists in The ARTS' Spotlight Gallery on Market Street.

Participating artists include: Vani Akula; Phil Ashworth; Gene Austin; Bethany Blanchard; Bridget Bossart van Otterloo; Wendy Brubaker; Robert Capozzi; Stephen Cooper; Kenneth Corey; Jessica Cunningham; Lynn Dates; Derek Denkenberger; Felicia Dvornicky; Tracey Everleth; Jennifer Fais; Ron Faris; Barbara Jean Foster-Doyle; Tom Gardner; Michael Gillan Maxwell; Rhonda Hall; Brittany Heinig; Samatha Holtgrewe; Chad Jacobson; Gretchen Kai Halpert; Ileen Kaplan; Rich LaVere; Jacque Lewis; Sandra Lowe; Ginnie Lupi; Joanne Sonsire; Marcia Tinker; Susan Wake; Bonnie Warden; and one anonymous entry.

Marc Dennis, Artist and Professor of Art at Elmira College, Elmira, New York, juried all submitted work. When asked what inspired The Bird Show, Marc simply said, "When observing birds you are potentially transported. And that's always a good thing." To see Marc's paintings visit his website: http://www.marcdennis.com/.

The exhibition will be held in the first floor gallery of The ARTS Council of the Southern Finger Lakes, 32 West Market Street in Corning. The Bird Show will open on April 2, with a public reception from 5:00 - 7:00 pm, and will be open Monday through Friday 9 am - 5 pm until April 24.

Further information can be obtained by emailing TheARTS@eARTS.org, or calling 607.962.5871 x226.

Bohemian Waxwing at Feast

Original Watercolor by RLHall

'Snowy Owl's Perch' original watercolor by RLHall

'Solitary Loon' original colored pencil drawing by RLHall

Just got word that the two artworks I submitted to a local juried exhibition have been accepted! :-) These snapshots are blurry, but show the framed works submitted....

The Juror commented in the acceptance letter: "The artistic quality, expression and attention to the subtle details of the subject matter impressed me!"