and now it's time to rest, recover and take stock.

      Since my Open Studio is in late September and that is when the weather also is cooling off...ie I'm tapering off on plein air painting, I find that afterwards is a natural time to take a break, reflect on the past year and consider what’s next in the coming months and even the coming year. The input I get from people who come to Open Studio is key in all this too and is part of what makes this a great time to take stock.

      I want to take this opportunity to Thank everyone who came to Open Studio and those who cheered me on from a distance or on social media. We tried some new things like the paint demo and Wendy Mitchell from Talleyville Frame Shoppe who came and did a framing talk/demo. We met some new friends (yeah!) and as always LOVE visiting with old friends. Thanks to ALL!

Love a good fire and a full moon and my better half, of course.

      Lately I’m enjoying doing a bit more cooking; some soups and maybe some last of the season grilling, some reading, some yard work…enjoying the fall weather. Filling my tank, so to speak.
     I finished Mad Enchantment by Ross King…. and recommend it. It gave me a sense of the man Claude Monet and the times he lived in a digestible way…not just facts and dry history. Now I am trying to tackle Rembrandts Eyes by Simon Schama which is supposed to be a masterful accounting of Rembrandt but just might be a bit dry. May take me a year or 2 to get thru this tome.
      At first I felt a bit guilty....taking this time to sit back and recuperate, although I knew it was sorely needed. Now I am relishing it; relaxing into it, because I know I need it. I KNOW it will serve me in the long run. I need to refuel...plain and simple.
      I will say I did finally work up a loose schedule for myself today, just so I don't fall off the deep end of bumble-dom which I can easily do. :) It's been great having nothing on the schedule for a couple weeks but I know I work better with some structure so, now, a bit of an outline will also serve me well.
     But I am still enjoying some quiet, deep breaths and a slower pace.....