WE HAVE A PAINTER IN THE FAMILY

MARKING OUT A DESIGN ON AN ELFRIDA GOURD IN THE BACKYARD

A month ago I was grumbling & complaining about having too many 'nothing days' & today I am happy to have a....nothing day:))  No mobility van runs until Wednesday so it was a quiet day at home getting caught up on a lot of computer stuff plus outside jobs. 

Kelly started a couple of paint projects that kept her busy for most of the day.  She decided to repaint some old & peeling deck furniture.  While the first coat of paint was drying from that project she moved on to painting up some gourds.  Last winter while at the ranch near McNeal Arizona we had picked up some gourds at the Elfrida Community Gardens.  Figured they might make for some colorful bird houses.  Today Kelly tried her artistic hand at some creative paints & designs for the gourds. 

 

KELLY'S DECK FURNITURE PAINT PROJECT...THAT WHITE COLOR IS ONLY A BASE COAT OVER THE BLUE & DARK YELLOW

Some of my time was taken up with transplanting some Hostas & weed trimming.  Most of my time was spent on the computer.  I always get excited whenever an email comes in from someone asking for permission to use any of my photos.  That is always very personally rewarding for me & just kind of puts the icing on the RV lifestyle cake.  Last night an email arrived from Pearce Arizona wondering if a few of my Camp Rucker photos from two winters could be used in an article on the GRAPEVINE CANYON RANCH blog site.  Sure can:))

Looks like we have a lot of rain headed our way & tomorrow is going to be a soggy one.  I will be out with the mobility van in the afternoon so better remember to take my rain coat.

 

Photo tip.....If your subject is in shade on a sunny day, use your camera's flash.  It's called 'fill-in-flash' & it puts a puff of light on your subject. Your camera's meter is probably reading for a correctly exposed background so your subject will be too dark.  Fill in flash was used on all these photos today except the frog below.  I brought in some natural morning sunlight for that shot:))

I have never been comfortable with the word, retired.  Always figured that mostly applied to folks who had worked long & hard for many years at their jobs.  People who stuck with careers through thick & thin.  Retirement always had a ring to it that smacked of success.  Retirement was a reward at the end of a long & dusty employment filled road.  Sometimes people ask me if I'm retired & my answer is always a quick,'no!!'  Don't figure I will ever see myself as a retired person.  Just don't like the sound of it & I don't think it applies to me anyway.  In fact I get a little embarrassed when somebody even asks me that question.  Retired??  Retired from what!!  And, am I really that old already!!  My rambling, sporadic, & adventurous work history over the years reads like a tall tale out of a Charles Dickens novel.  I will do a blog about it sometime, but not tonight.  In fact, think I'll go retire.............. to bed!!

  <<< Isn't she just a lovely little creature:))  xoxoxo

GROANER'S CORNER:((  You know your over the hill when you're on vacation and your energy runs out before your money does.

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