END OF THE DAY

I'VE BEEN IN THE GALLERY all day, it's been quite busy. there were about twenty people through, and i sold another print. julie bought one yesterday and my neighbours in cadell street bought one today.
i've also sold three books so that's not a bad start.  the opening is on sunday afternoon and anne thinks it'll be a busy afternoon. i've got a table set up with invitations and business postcards, and i've got the laptop, wi fi and my sketchbooks.  tomorrow i'll take a couple of copper plates down too, so i've got a lot of things i can be doing.  plus the crossword of course

  

DARLING LILIES

Yesterday was a nice day, julie's friends (currently exhibiting at the art vault) all came out to see my show.  Sally bought a couple of books for her grandchildren then they all came down to my place to look at the river.   
I was settled in for a quiet evening when i spotted someone peering through the kitchen window. it was sue, who i saw at the art vault opening on wednesday.  she and i discovered we both went to belmont high. 
she and her husband came to tell me that the darling lilies are out.    i'd never heard of them. apparently they don't always flower and they haven't been seen for a while. they gave me directions so this morning i drove out the silver city highway to the pomona road and about 4 kms up the road there they were, a few on the side of the road on the right then on the left, a field of them.    lovely white slightly spidery lilies.

GOSH

SEEMS LIKE DAYS since i've written on the blog - is it?  i've got my two grant applications done, photos assembled and burned onto cd's. (i've decided this apostrophe is ok, incorrect but useful :0)    support material, project outlines, cv, etc
all done.  it's so time and brain consuming.
my work is up on the walls at artback and i'm happy with it all.  i'll sit in at the exhibition for the next 10 days, i'll set up a temporary studio and work on my next book and the swan lake project without the distractions of home.   i don't think i'll be swamped with
people coming through the exhibition, probably mostly people travelling through wentworth and on their way to the junction. it'll be interesting to see who does come.
i know mildura people think wentworth is a long way away  (a whole half hour)  but it is the arts festival so they may be out and about.

a gallery waiting for a show

tuesday - figuring out where to hang

wednesday done. and i got a good two page story in the sunraysia daily yesterday. opening is on sunday afternoon.

last night an opening at the art vault, julie had the black room almost to herself, a group show of julie and her canberra art school buddies.   julie's given me a day's work a week, every wednesday working on invitation design, general media and other responsibilities yet to be worked out.  meeting on monday of all staff.   i'm really pleased.

the familiar art vault laneway 

BEAUTIFUL DAYS, BUSY WEEK

my head is so full this week,  one application due march 1, my show opens

march 2, other application march 3.   could that timing be any worse?   and i'm trying

to put a slide show of photos on a disc with a sound track, don't know how yet?  i want

it to run along with my show,  pics of the  river and birds.   sigh

but . . .

it feels like early autumn here, i've been out in the mornings gardening, doesn't take long to get quite a bit done. i've planted red/green alstromerias from donnie's garden this morning, they're the same as some mum had, they look like christmas decorations to me, lovely red bells with green inside. there's peastraw everywhere and the weeds are scared :0)

the lawn was about 8" long after being left then being thoroughly soaked before i left for melbourne. now it's cut everything's looking very tranquil 

i've got the old

problem again -

a wall to hang

and no idea

where to start

NO MORE MICE . . . yet

THEY EITHER DON'T LIKE CHEESE or peanut butter (which is recommended on the mousetraps) or they're not here.  It's sunday morning and the traps are all empty.

the grass is cut!  after the big rain a week ago i returned to an already long lawn which had an extra 3" at least. now it's neat and tidy and i'll start watering again.  it's lovely to have these cool mornings and mild days, feels like a holiday.

i'm getting grant applications together, due at the same time my exhibition opens, always the way. it's everything or nothing on the work front.

yesterday was just a lovely day, donnie and peter's 50th wedding anniversary celebrated with lunch at stefano's.  amazing food, warm and funny speeches and good company.

pretty table decorations of tiny pears from donnie's garden

tom and penny in 
front of one of the
series of art deco
etched mirrors - 
installed in stefano's
from the old grand
hotel, all the designs
depicting parts of 
mildura - the old
base hospital, the 
bridge, river etc.

<  my pannacotta

MEESKA MOOSKA MOUSE-KA- TEER

MOUSIE DOOM TIME NOW IS HERE  -  with apologies to walt disney. 

 i'm sitting in bed looking at facebook and i hear a sharp click - it's my mousetrap snapping up yet another mouse.  i knew i had one or two, but obviously there are a lot more that just don't leave much evidence around.  i caught two last night and just put the traps down in the kitchen again about half an hour ago -  i hate to think what's happening inside the walls.  thank goodness the newer style traps neatly catch the mouse and can be emptied easily without touching the sad little fella - i do have pangs of guilt, they're so tiny.

when i got back from melbourne the avocado i'd left to ripen on the window sill had been neatly eaten out at one end, right through the skin.   and there were tiny bits of chewed up plastic and foil on the floor.  lining for a nest no doubt.
a few weeks ago my first discovery of a mouse was in my bedroom.     the industrious little devil had made a very neat newspaper and tissue nest in my ugg boot.  after hearing scratching in the dark of the early morning i actually saw a used tissue being pulled up into my wardrobe. it was quite surreal, a moving tissue disappearing up inside the closed door.     needless to say, that is an ex-mouse.

BYE BYE CAL :0{

52 WEEK CHALLENGE

I'VE JUST BEGUN the 52 week illustration challenge.  each week has a different challenge, a subject, medium etc.  you have to do the illustration and post it on facebook.  i'm starting late, at week 8 but i'll go back and do the first seven as well.   good practice

WEEK ONE - EGGS         graphite on paper, 

WEEK EIGHT - Cross Hatching

LUNCH ON THE RIVER

TUESDAY i met new friend graham down at the riverside cafes below fed square.  it was a perfect hazy day with the feel of autumn.

northcote town hall reflected

one of my favorite melbourne buildings

 

old post office in bourke st

with graham roy barker

reflections

LATER THAT NIGHT  rene dropped cal round while he and sayaka went out so sunny and i spent the evening on the couch watching him sleep :0)

WEDNESDAY - rene drove me to the airport for the flight back to mildura so we had more time together. it's been so lovely to have him here for a few days, not enough but still great.

SUNDAY AT THE PUB

pics from the torquay pub beer garden

back at gail's later in the day

out like a light

MONDAY IN MELBOURNE

we caught up with ron at the grand prix track in albert park

SUNDAY IN TORQUAY

 little cal, fresh from the bath
on sunday, we all stayed at
gail's - rene, sayaka, cal,
sunny and i.

cal meets the sea

jenny and mockie 

It was a lovely family weekend, family and friends.  after the bbq last night we spent sunday wandering around the cowrie market on the torquay front beach, and later in the day we all headed down to the torquay pub to see soul sister swing out in the beer garden.