Momentum

"Colorado Headwaters"
Oil on Canvas
12x16"




After the wasp invasion a few weeks back, I completely lost my momentum with painting. I had completed four paintings that weekend and was excited to keep working, but the nasty wasps in my studio kept me away from the easel for a few days, and then life got in the way again.

I did manage to frame and deliver some paintings to the gallery earlier this month, which at least made me feel like I had accomplished something. Then I got busy wrapping things up at work and trying to find some time to get ready for the baby, and didn't get much else accomplished.

I found out last week that my paintings for the Forbes show need to be done and photographed by November 15th, so that got me going again. I spent some time this weekend working on one of the last two paintings I plan to do for the show, and will hopefully finish the final one this week. Nothing like a deadline to get me going!!! Further evidence that I am officially a procrastinator...

My last day of work is next Friday, and assuming that the baby doesn't come early, that will give me three weeks to get stuff done before my life is taken over by midnight feedings and poopy diapers. During that time, I've got to get five or six small paintings done for a holiday miniatures show. Then I'm planning to be officially on maternity leave for a month or so - I'll fit in painting where I can, when I'm ready.

Simplifying

Okay, so I got sick of the peach color of my blog template, and decided to go back to basics and use something a bit more simple. I don't know html, but that didn't stop me from spending an hour customizing the colors of the plain blogger template to look better with my paintings. I'm such a geek...

Invasion

This sucks.

Nate was out of town this weekend, so I was going to be ambitious and productive and get all sorts of painting done.

I did five acrylic underpaintings last week, and was ready to get to work with the oils on Saturday morning. I headed down to my studio in the basement, and while I was cleaning up my palette, I noticed a huge wasp flying around by the window screen. I closed the window, trapping him between the glass and screen, and continued with my painting, managing to finish two paintings before dinner.

This morning, I headed back down and completed a small 8x10" painting before lunch, then started on another small study. As I started to get into it, I noticed another wasp flying above my head.

Now, my studio is in a walkout basement, and I had assumed that the first wasp just managed to squeeze its way in through a gap in the doggie door. But to have more than one of these things flying around in my basement seemed a bit strange. Just then, I noticed the distinct sound of insects hitting a window, and found that it was coming from the back room of the basement. I went and looked, and there were about 20 yellowjackets flying around the inside of the window!!

So, I turned off the radio, grabbed my dog, and headed upstairs. I'm 7.5 months pregnant, and didn't really feel like pissing off a colony of wasps in my basement!! I figured I'd send Nate down there to fix the situation when he gets home tonight - that's what husbands are for, right?

So much for my productive weekend of painting... Why'd they have to take up residence in my studio, of all places?