Christmas Rhode Island Style

Nothing says Christmas like a few bottle rockets.

Christmas Greetings

I had hoped to achieve 100 posts by the end of the year but that doesn't look like it is going to happen because I have been away too long.  I suppose that happens when one is working 50+ hours a week.  All work and no play as they say.

I have been making my way thru Eat Pray Love and for those of you who haven't seen the movie, the book is nothing like the movie.  I finished the Italy part and the India part seems more like the movie but still different.  I find it interesting how the screen writers come up a movie based on a book without being the same, just a resemblance.  

Another example of this in my mind would be Under the Tuscan Sun (movie WAY better than the book because it had something to say) and Band of Brothers.  Love the miniseries and also loved the book but I don't see how the miniseries came from the book because most of the main characters in the mini series were mere footnotes in the book.  Still both continue to hold my interest.

 Make sure you watch A Christmas Story, my all time favorite holiday movie and make sure you don't shoot your eye out.

A New Project

Here is my latest project.  It is two feet by four feet and it will hang in in a yoga studio.  It is an acrylic and I only used three colors:  cad red as a base coat and black and white.  I have since reworked the nose at least twice so it looks better than this.

Another Day at the Dump

Those of you who have been reading regularly know that I love to take a trip to the dump (which is technically a transfer station so who knows where it all ends up) with my household trash.  Today I will finally show you what it looks like.

The big brown structure is "the pit" where the trash goes.  The smaller white one in the fore ground is where old guys sit to make sure you have the proper sticker on your car and are allowed to dump.  Not a bad job.

Here were some of the goodies just waiting to be taken home.  How about that lime green dresser?  And not a bad stroller or high chair.

And here is where you find treasure.  It doesn't look like much but believe me, there is hidden gold everywhere.  On this particular day it was pretty cleaned out and lots of books.  I don't know if you can read the rules but some one can't spell and most people don't read them any way.

Here is a close up of what you can find.  This is the dishes and breakable shelf.  One woman told me that she found a place setting for her china set there.

This is where the glass is recycled.  There is also a place for plastic and newspapers on the other side.

All is pretty well organized, not bad for a middle class town.  It does not, however, compare in any way to the Cape Cod's South Yarmouth dump where your cast offs have to pass a jurying process to be worthy of being picked up at the dump.  I just wish I knew someone there with a sticker.

Hope you enjoyed the tour.

Christmas Season

I did not mean to be away so long.  Time has a way of slipping by this time of year.

The weather here has been unseasonably warm, not that there is anything wrong with that.  We have had temps in the 50's and 60's and so far no snow except that dusting (for us anyway) around Halloween.

Having said all that, I do not have the Christmas spirit.  I have been working a lot of hours and I do not plan to put up any Christmas decorations again this year.  I do not have time to prepare a Christmas party, nor do I have time, thus far, to make my kielbasa run.  Our Christmas plans are to go to Rhode Island to my daughter's house on Christmas Eve and stay over night for mimosas in the morning.   We will head back later Christmas day and maybe go to the movies.

I hope all of you out there are feeling better about the holiday season and I promise to show you my latest art projects and some pictures of the dump.

The Longest Day

I am spending the longest day ever.  It started when I had to get up at 3am to man the cash registers at Lord and Taylor at 5am.  When I arrived there were already signs of Friday Frenzy since Target and Macy's were already open.

It started off really slow and it took forever just to reach 7am.  I had my lunch break at 9am.  Things always seem better after lunch and business did pick up but it wasn't all that busy.  The shoe and cosmetics departments were out of control and understaffed.

I got to go home at 2:15 and from there I went to the dump where I picked up another Jodi Piccoult and Seabiscuit.  I took a two hour nap and here it is only 7:30 with a few more hours to go.  I feel like I have traveled half way around the world.

Thanksgiving Eve

I decided to take a trip to the Stop and Shop after work.  I actually had to because my assignment for Thanksgiving was to supply some appetizers and I have not had any time to do it.  I was dreading this but much to my surprise, I was in and out rather quickly with some decent stuff and aside from the fact that I was only slightly annoyed when the bagger used plastic when I brought my own (this is a guy with a job?) the experience was relatively painless.

On my way out, the lottery card machine was staring me in the face.  I saw a game, something to do with jingle bells.  I figured it must be a new game and they say that there are more winning tickets when the game is new.  Don't know if that is true but I like to play the new games.  It was a $10 ticket so I decided to take a chance.  The ten dollar bill in my wallet was really old and the machine would not accept it.  I could have walked away but I decided to try $20 because the machine does not make change.  

To make this long story short, I won $50!  Happy Thanksgiving.

The Best Pencil Ever!

I am in love with my new pencil.  I bought it at the art supply store at the De Cordova museum over the summer and I have just begun to appreciate its virtues.  It is  called Hardtmuth Progresso by Koh-I-Noor.  It comes in various hardnesses and I bought mine in 8B.  Here it is:

It is heavy for a pencil and it draws so smoothly.  You can use it to build up layers but it doesn't seem to have a lead per se.  It seems to be just one piece of something and it can be easily sharpened.  I have been looking around for it but even Dick Blick doesn't carry it.  It goes for about $1.75 if memory serves me correctly.

I feel competent when I use it as I do not especially like to draw.  Here is what I did with it in just a few minutes:

Not too shabby if I do say so myself.  I was looking through some old pictures of a trip we took to Iceland a few years ago and this handsome fellow in a brochure caught my eye..

Painting Part 2

Here is what I think is the finished product:

I added some more bushes and a few details with pen and ink.  I think there should be more details in the yellow/green at the bottom but I am not sure what that should be.  On the other hand, maybe I will just leave it alone.

New Project

As I may have mentioned a few days ago, I have started a new project.  Inspired by the painting I bought from local artist Sally Dean and Jane Filer, here is what I started:

I am pleased with this beginning so we will see where it goes from here.  It is small, only 8 x 10.  I haven't worked such a small format for a long time and I have a few frames hanging around that might fit.

Saturday at the Dump

As I drove up to the dump, my heart started racing.  There was a ton of stuff there, so much that it was spilling out onto the driveway.  I thought that there must be something for me today and the hunt was on.

The first thing I spotted was a tray table that I thought would be perfect for some encaustic work like a place to fuse or put more heat plates.  I picked up two canvases to repaint and an unused piece of 1/2" foam core.   I also found a Steven King book that I may have already read  and a framed bread wrapper (?)  I figured that the bread wrapper would make a nice collage element.  My arms were full so I went back to the car with my treasures for another round.

I was feeling pretty good about my finds and then I saw you know who.  Yes it was the Grouchy Guy in the Blue Van.  Is he following me around?  Anyway, he just ruined the whole mood for me so I decided to call it a day.

I have been working on a small project and I am almost finished with it.  I will be showing the steps that I have been through very shortly.

At the Dump

I went to the dump on Sunday and I was shut out again.  When I arrived I was pretty excited because there was a lot of large items outside the shed so I thought there were lots of possibilities.  Unfortunately, my nemesis, aka the Grouchy Guy in the Blue Van, was also there doing his grouchy thing.  Nada, nothing, zilch.  Oh well.  My next opportunity is Saturday and I am due for a win.  Kind of like fishing - some days they bite and some days they don't.

Daylight Savings

I have always had a problem with daylight savings.  Aside from being depressing for the next three months, I find that the first day goes on forever.  I wake up disoriented and paranoid about the time.  I like the extra hour of sleep but I still wake up too early and  I hate driving home in the dark.

But on a lighter note I wanted to share some final pictures of Foxwoods found outside the Hard Rock Cafe:

 Madonna wore this

 John Entwhistle from the Who wore this (?)

 Not Elvis but Chris Isaak

 Some Chris Isaak bling close up

Britanny Spears

Wax, Inc. and Small Works

 I sold a piece at the Small Works show and I think I sold another because I did not see it hanging.  Because of this I purchased something from Sally Dean.  It was such a good value and I love her work.  Here it is:

More Foxwoods

Here are some more pictures from Foxwoods:

I also saw the Princess Diana exhibit which focused on her life and work.  Her wedding dress was there which was less ornate than I thought and more of her clothes and jewels.  Her clothes are timeless elegance, especially her gowns.  It was a beautiful exhibit and no pictures were allowed.

More Foxwoods

For our weekend at Foxwoods here is what the morning looked like:

As it turned out, we were the lucky ones.  There were people we talked to that had no lights and came to spend the day.  Connecticut was particularly hard hit in some areas but no problem here.  I wonder what would have happened if the lights went out.  I think they would have managed to keep the slots running.

Anyway, we were treated to a Willie Nelson concert the night before and here is the man himself.  He was kind enough to sign autographs after the show and I got one.  

What was really amazing was that he has worn a hole in his guitar.  If you go to Wikipedia, you will see him wearing the same thing when I saw him.

Happy Halloween!

It sure doesn't feel like it but it is Halloween.  We got some snow over the weekend and it seems that people aren't decorating this year.  On the drive home tonight I saw very few kids.  What's going on?

Here are a couple of carved pumpkins we saw at Foxwoods this weekend.  They were those extra large ones that you find at fairs weighing the most.  More on our little trip tomorrow.

Big Score

On my latest visit to the dump, I was feeling shut out again when I spied a small box of costume jewelry.  Now, you NEVER find any kind of jewelry at the dump so I just grabbed it to look at more closely in the car.

There were five pins, two bracelets, and a necklace.  Two of the pins are real keepers, one a Monet butterfly with multi colored stones and the other a heart.  One of the pins was a snow flake still on its card from Macy's with a $22 price on it.  The other two pins were gold and just ok.  The necklace, I am not so sure about but it could grow on me. 

The bracelets are the best of the lot.  One is a gold cuff from Chico's and the other is delicate with blue stones.  It was my lucky day.

Something New

I thought I would share a recent project.  It is an acrylic abstract that I worked up pretty fast.  I think it is ok or at least I don't know what else to do with it.

Day 2

I added a few details on my latest project and here is what I have so far.  I am liking the pen and ink for the smaller details but they are not showing up in this picture.

I noticed that all the details are running up the middle so I plan to add some things at the sides.

A New Project

I was inspired by Jane Filer's artist's talk last week.  Here is my version, still in progress.  I want to add more details, etc.

Day 2 At the Dump

I had better luck today than the last time.  I picked up two books:  Eat, Pray, Love and Anita Shreve's  Body Surfing.  I passed on Water for Elephants because I already read it.  (good one)

The Grouchy Old Guy in the Blue Van was there dunging out the place.  He is there at least half times I go and I suspect that he goes thru the stuff in the guise of cleaning up and takes the good stuff for a yard sale.  He always gives these huge sighs like it is a burden and shuffles his feet as he throws things away or puts them in his van.  I find him to be unpleasant and always in the way. Fred claims to never have seen him and he thinks this old guy is a figment of my imagination.

I just finished reading my second Dennis Lehane book, Prayers for Rain featuring Patrick Kenzie and Angela Genaro.  I like the writing style and how he mentions local scenes like Plymouth, Nantasket and the traffic.  It was a good story and I understand he has a new one featuring these characters.  I'll keep my eye out for that one.

Day at the Dump

It has been at least a couple of weeks since I made a trip to the dump.  I went on  Saturday which is one of the busiest days and people were dropping off and picking up.  I got shut out completely!  There was nothing interesting, not a book, nothing.  That sure took the wind out of my sails.  I get to try again on Tuesday since I am not working that day.

Lecture

I had the pleasure of attending an artist's lecture by Jane Filer at the Duxbury Art Complex the other day.  I like her work, her colors, and style.  Unfortunately I did not sign up for her workshop because I had to work.  It is always interesting to hear about another artist's process and how they get their ideas.  I was pleased to hear that she generally does not do sketches and just lets it all happen.  You can check out her work at www.janefiler.com

I also started watching Bravo's Next Great Artist which began last night.  I thought the artist self portrait with crayons was awesome.  He is an elementary school art teacher so the crayons were a great choice.  I wonder what he used for glue.

The Heat Is On

A couple of things I don't like about the fall:  it gets dark so early and you have to turn on the heat.  We try to tough it out as long as we can but it gets so cold n the house.  The heat went on last week and once it goes on, it stays on for the next six months or so.

However, we have had a couple days of summer like weather and maybe another one tomorrow.  How great is that?

Sunday Evening

I just finished watching Hall Pass, a movie by the Farrelly Brothers. What I like about their movies is the localness.  I appreciate the fact that they always manage to refer to their Rhode Island roots even though one of the brothers ( Bobby I think) lives in nearby Duxbury.  I will never forget the glimpse of the Big Blue Bug in Dumber and Dumber, one of my favorite dumbest movies of all time.

To those of who are reading this: I am becoming a fan of Jason Sudeikis, aside from the fact that he is Lithuanian and that I think he is cute.

My point about this movie is that  I appreciate the fact that the Farrelly brothers make a good point about mentioning their Rhode Island roots but this movie was filmed in Georgia!  Yes I liked the mention of Hope Street and I liked when Owen Wilson was reading the Providence Journal with the Ocean State Job Lot ad.  I get that.  But it was all Hollywood fake!  I just wish it could have been filmed where it was supposed to be but I am sure it was all about the money.

Friday

I  just finished watching season 1 of the HBO series Treme.  It made me want to go back to New Orleans.   I want to eat the food, drink the drinks, and hear the music.  The series does a great job of bringing it all alive.  You can tell that they film there and use regular people.

What have you been watching?  Do you have any new favorite shows?  Me, I am still watching old favorites like Project Runway, America's Next Top Model, and the Amazing Race.  Nobody ever said my tastes were high brow.

Where Has the Time Gone?

September is notorious for going by too fast.  The next thing you now it will be the holidays which I dread.  Today, however, is a little hot and humid, some leftover summer.

I went to the Plymouth Guild's opening on Friday night and I must say that it is a very good show.  There are about 250 works (you have about a one in three chance of getting in) and I only noticed a couple of clunkers.  The judging on the whole was very good.  My friend Kathy won a second prize for a small etching and it sold that evening.  Double congrats to her!

I need to be thinking ahead for the small works show at the South Shore Art Center.  I am looking forward to their next upcoming encaustic show.

Competition in the Arts

I like a good art show. When it is a juried show I expect more than an open exhibition.  In a juried show there is always a piece or two that makes me scratch my head with the question of how did that get in?

I recently entered the Plymouth Guild's annual juried show and one of my pieces got in and the other didn't.  Now I am happy that I got into the show but I am mystified as to why this particular piece did not get in.  It was an abstract that my RISD classmates liked a lot.  The piece that did get in was also the one that received an honorable mention in Duxbury this past summer.  I felt that both pieces were strong.

One thing that bothers me about Plymouth shows is that they try to include everybody.  You can only win one ribbon and they want to have as many pieces as possible.  I do not agree with this policy because if they accept marginal pieces, it dilutes the quality of the show and how can this represent the best work of its members?

The opening is this Friday and I hope it does not disappoint as last year's show did.

Checking My Calendar

I just checked my calendar and realized that I am no fun at all.  I have scheduled myself to work 29 out of 30 days in September!  What am I thinking?  What I am thinking is that if I ever want to take a vacation or give my son a wedding present I had better make a few bucks.  I am investing in some art prints and cards for the holiday season so I hope it pays off.  Business is slow at the Etsy shop.

Shut Out

I went to the dump today and I came home empty handed.  What a disappointment.  No new books, no new stuff I didn't need and no new stuff I did need but that's the way it goes. On my last trip I netted four Sookie Stackhouse paperbacks, not that I am much of a fan of the novels but  I am hooked on the HBO series.  I think they do a great job in the casting department.  Bill is way too creepy for me and Sookie is too annoying in the books.

I also had to pass on a Mc Coy flower pot because it was too damaged.  Bummer.  It was the first one I have ever run across down there.

Some Time Off

I have to confess that I am being lazy of late.  I was working on another Buddha face and it just wasn't coming together so I finished it off with a coat of gesso.  My next piece is an abstract but that has a long way to go.

I have reopened my long dormant Etsy shop:  dianneemillerdesigns.etsy.com

I have some Buddha paintings and reproductions and I hope to get some supplies in there also.  I have some crystals from a chandelier and maybe I will put in a few other things.

Some Unexpected Visitors

We had some unusual guests on the deck the other day.  The pictures aren't very clear but there were three turkeys just passing thru.  At least I hope they were just passing thru.

ç

Dana Farber

Here is my donation to the Dana Farber Cancer Instutute.  I hope somebody likes it.  I had a lot of fun doing it and it went together quickly.

The Weather That Wasn't

With all the hurricane hype that was going on for the last couple of days, it was no surprise that nothing really happened around here.  There was very little rain and the wind only lasted a few hours.  However, a big portion of the neighbor's tree fell in our yard so I guess it's our tree now.

Road Trip!

We took a road trip to the De Cordova museum which is most known for its sculpture park. The museum itself had a few exhibits and I was especially intrigued by Alan Goldsworthy's idea of taking a large dirty snowball and letting it melt onto paper.  The result was a subtle pattern of brownish black.  I tried it at home with ice but I was less subtle.  I put rusty nuts and bolts and some handmade paper that I know runs and put it all in water and froze it.  Then I put the ice chunk out on the deck to melt.  As an after thought I sprinkled some cumin on top of the whole mess.  It was warm and humid so the paper took longer to dry than I thought.  I am still studying the results and wondering what to do with it.

But in the mean time, here are a couple pictures of the sculptures from the grounds:

Do You Know What I Mean?

Like, it was not long ago, like, when everyone could not say more than, like, six words without using the word like.  It was like they forgot all their adjectives or like something like that.  Like, it was really irritating to hear like fingers on a chalkboard or something like that.

Well apparently there is something out there taking the place of the overuse of the word like and equally irritating.  I am talking about the phrase "Do you know what I mean".  I am hearing this too often and if you are one of the many offenders out there, stop saying it.  People are saying after the most obvious statements:  I had to go to work today.  Do you know what I mean?  No, I haven't figured it out yet.  Are we supposed to even answer that?   If you have to keep saying it, them maybe you should rethink what you just said and restate it more clearly.

Do you know what I mean?

At Last!

Well I guess this is the finished product.  I'm not sure how I feel about it but here it is anyway.

I have reopened my long dormant Etsy account and you will find this listed there with a few other familar faces. I don't know if I am getting smarter or if Etsy is getting easier, but loading the items was a breeze.  Not too many false starts or frustrations.

Another Attempt

We are still at it and I am not sure where this is all going.  Here is the latest version.  I am still not happy with the colors but I like the eyes and the nose.  I also like the mouth but it may be too dark.

Etc.

Here is another version of my current project.  The face isn't much different from the picture but I spent a couple of hours "improving" on it. I am attempting to add an ear but I don't know how to paint one and some hair.   Still not happy.  The colors are in danger of getting muddy.

Back to Work

Here is the next version of my now long term project.  I am still not happy with the colors so that will change, to what I am ot sure.

A Break From It All

I thought I would take a break from my painting project and show you something I found at the dump last week.  It is someone's unfinished project and I like it a lot. I like the colors and the style.

Step Two

Here was the result of working on my latest Buddha effort.  It is looking a little like those Avatar people.  More to do next time.

My Newest Project

Here is a new project at its beginning stage.  So far I like the drawing so we will see where it goes from here.  It is 18 x 24.  The colors are left over paint and I like what happens when they are mixed together to get that neutral color.  I wish I had more of those paints.

At Last!

It was a long wait but it is finally here:  my RISD diploma.  I guess I am officially an alumni.

I am somewhat disappointed because I was expecting a little more like some gold foil or embossing.   It is just printed on some ok kind of paper.   Somebody did a nice job on the calligraphy and they spelled my name right.   I really shouldn't complain.

Finally Finished

After much going back and forth and a few coats of gesso, we are finally done.  I guess it is ok.

I was recently presented with an interesting opportunity.  I was asked to donate a 12 x 12 piece of art to benefit the Dana Farber Cancer Institute..  I am excited about this because not only does it benefit a worthy cause, but I also get to show in Boston.  You never know who is looking.  Not only that, the theme is pretty easy:  Color, Contour and Comfort.  What am I going to paint?  A Buddha face of course.