I'm So Hungry!

And here I sit eating a little serving of applesauce!  It's good, but I need some real food and I have a long time to start getting impatient now!  I should have had a protein shake as soon as I came home from the gym, but missed the opportunity.  I'm tired of shakes and, dare I even say it, I'm tired of ice cream!

It's been a while since I've gotten paint all over my hands and I have been itching to get back to it.  I had already sketched some red potatoes onto a small canvas so I decided to go for it.  I will post a photo, except I don't know what causes the light spots - the actual photo doesn't look like that.  I had made the shadows darker than I like, so lightened them up a bit and maybe something in the 2nd coat is catching the light?  It's too technical for me to figure out.  I hate doing shadows anyway.  (Click to enlarge).

I've been working on sketching birds and animals, trying  to do a small quick one each day, and so far have done a black-capped chickadee that I'm happy with.   Also a crow that turned out so-so, and a hummingbird.  The animals include a black bear, and I'm planning to do a red fox next, saving the big guys til last (an elephant and a black panther).  These birds and animals are all special to me, and include my two beloved dogs, Smoky and Lady.  I don't think I would even try to draw them much less paint them.

Note that the newspaper under the painting is because I did it at the living room coffee table.  I use a blue plastic sheet on my artist's table, and it's a good thing when you see the paint smears on it.

The applesauce just kicked my appetite into high gear, so I had a protein shake with two generous scoops of ice cream!  All I can think about is wanting carnitas, or maybe an enchilada.   

 I just finished watching Bob Ross' 11th season and will start on the 12th season tomorrow.  There are 13 episodes in each season, so I've watched a lot of what he's done.  When I think that maybe it's the same thing all over again, he comes up with something new or something I hadn't seen him do before.  A lot of folks complain that he did essentially the same thing over and over, but what better way for a learner to get a chance to practice techniques and improve their skills.  If you don't know how to draw a tree when you start painting with Bob, you certainly do after a few episodes (there are trees in every painting he did except the seascapes.)!  Unfortunately many of his techniques do not translate over into acrylic painting, but his calm demeanor and positive frame of mind are as essential to him as a teacher as well as his artistic skills.  And as a learner I've already adapted his outlook on the joy of painting.

I may try to get a nap into my afternoon before I start planning my supper.  I think I'm going to bake a cod filet and see how I do with it - hopefully I can keep it away from the stitches.  I will feel 500% better if I can get some real food! 

I hope everyone has a great upcoming week.  The holidays are drawing closer, and I'm glad that shopping isn't a big issue for me this year since I have little elves doing the work for me!

I need to get moving!

I've been sitting around for too long and it's driving me crazy.  I think I  should do some walking since I've really fallen behind on my vow to walk every day.

Breakfast was interesting this morning.   I cooked grits to which I added salt, pepper, cheddar and a splash of milk.  It was pretty good although I don't think I'd want it every morning.  When I was backpacking on the Appalachian Trail, I carried the individual serving packets of Quaker grits, some were flavored with bacon bits, cheese, etc.  Add boiling water, stir, and voila!  I probably ate four packets every morning and probably could have, and should have, doubled that.  There comes a limit to what you can carry, although they were light enough in weight.   I've tried a packet of them since and don't know how I found them so tasty, but when you are hungry and in the woods I guess lots of things are tasty that you wouldn't eat at home.

I followed my grits with a dish of ice cream with a splash of chocolate topping.   It may sound good, and I love it, but it's definitely not breakfast food.   I don't like this very limited diet that is so high in carbs, and often in sugar, and I think I will have some difficulty getting back to a nutritious low carb, lo sugar diet when I can eat regular foods again.   My dentist recommended Carnation Instant Breakfast as something that is nutritious and easy to eat in my circumstances.   Since I got excellent advice against the Ensure, which most doctors and hospitals say is good for you, I'm wondering what your take on the Carnation breakfast is.  Things like that don't sound very appetizing to me in the first place, but if it would add lots of calories (and not just sugar) I might try it.

I am sitting in the middle of the biggest mess I've made in a long time.  Because I don't feel like moving around a lot, I just bring everything I need into the living room with me, and every available space is covered with "stuff".  I'm going to have one heckuva cleaning job to do one of these days.  OK, I'm not getting anything done just sitting here, so I'll say "have a great weekend, and I'll see ya next time."  

What a difference!

As the old song goes, what a difference a day makes.  I don't know when the injection sites will start hurting, but they haven't yet, and the stitches don't bother me at all.  I can't believe I will get away with having two molars extracted and only need 2 Advil for pain.  

The laundry was building up so I'm trying to do most of it, if not all, today.  
The sun is shining but it's only 55F and there is a strong wind blowing.  As much as I dislike using a dryer I decided to make it a bit easier on myself.  At least I've gotten the  2 sets of summer sheets clean and on the shelf waiting for next spring!   Two more loads to go and I'm finished for a while.

I managed to eat some cooked cereal and a banana this morning but that is only my normal "first breakfast".  I'm trying to figure out what I want for lunch and mashed potatoes topped with cheddar sounds good, although the potatoes I have on hand are better for other uses than for mashing.  I am not going to start complaining at this stage of the game, as I'll probably have much more complaining to do after a week or so.

Ok, so I stopped writing long enough to peel, cook, mash, and eat a whole lot of mashed potatoes with lots of cheddar!  I'm reminded of when my 4th younger brother played high school football with Moeller High School in Cincinnati (along with John Boehner I might add).  A high school junior playing football simply cannot eat enough to satisfy and fill him up, and I probably was not close to what he could put away, but I can say I thought I was making enough for several meals.  All gone and sooo good!

I'll be taking the last loads over to dry them in just a few minutes and the thought occurred to me that I haven't even formed the word "nap" in my mind or on my lips all day long.   I'm so grateful for feeling like doing anything at all, especially the laundry, so maybe I should reward myself!

 

 

Worst day

If yesterday was the slowest, then I hope this is the worst it gets!  I was in the dentist chair for a long time.  Molars often break and don't come out in one piece, and one of them gave him a very hard time.  I ended up with sutures which I think is what is causing the pain once the novocaine wore off.  So far I'm doing ok with Advil (and sleeping) and he told me if I needed something stronger he would prescribe it.  I probably should have gone ahead and accepted the Rx but I want to see if I can get along without it.  I've only been able to eat a spoon or two of ice cream now and then, so far.  I'm hungry but no way hungry enough to bother fixing anything and trying to drink it.  I may make a milkshake in a little while.

I stayed at Jeannie's house until I was sure I could drive after taking a valium early this morning.  I did fine and the traffic was surprisingly light on the way home.  

The sun is shining and I should be doing laundry or something productive, but it looks like sun for the rest of the week so I'll take my time.

So, the gypsy might be down but definitely not out!  At least at this present moment.  Hope you are all having a good day.

Slowest day of the year!

Nov. 30 is turning out to be the slowest day for me.  The clock is advancing, but my feeling is that I'm standing still.  I will sure be glad when this is over with by this time tomorrow, although that is when the hurting will begin.

Hope everyone else has a great day!

Finally!

Steve & Meg brought baby Quinn to Jeannie's house yesterday and I was there and ready!  Meg handed her to me immediately; I spoke to her in a soft voice and, eyes open wide, she smiled at me!  Such a big smile, no doubt about it.  Need I say that my heart soared.  Jeannie was next, and from then on she was passed around for everyone to hold, even the kids.  There is just nothing like it, and I'm not just being grandmotherly when I say she is a beautiful baby (I've never seen a baby that wasn't beautiful) with a lot of dark hair so far.  She's a tiny little thing, somewhere in the neighborhood of 7 pounds.  I'm glad to have been able to hold her while she is still tiny as all my babies were tiny and it is just like old times.

After looking at what is available in the grocery store yesterday, I've decided I can make a better cream soup from scratch than I can buy in a can, so that's what I'll do for the first few weeks.  I love Malto cereal which is sort of like cream of wheat only made with corn, and flavored with maple and brown sugar.  I'm going to get some cream of wheat and also some grits, and should be ok for breakfast at least, and maybe even for supper.  I love grits with salt, pepper, and cheddar cheese.  If I could only have some shrimp to go along with the cheesy grits!

My rent bill came today along with the newsletter/booklet for December.  I note they have a time at the clubhouse on Monday afternoon set aside for crafts.  Anyone can bring their crafts to work on, and I'm giving some thought to trying it out and taking a canvas, some paints & a brush or two.  I bought a small container of hand wipes that are supposed to be good for cleaning paint off a brush as well as one's hands, plus I'm sure they have a water source nearby.  I haven't decided exactly what I would take or whether it's worth it to haul even a few supplies down there and back.  I figure I only would need to go once and I would be able to tell if I would enjoy it or not.

OK, I'm sitting around long enough and need to get some things done before I am feeling too bad to do anything.  Tomorrow night I will stay at Jeannie's and Ara will take me to my appt at 7:40am on Wednesday morning.  I'm not sure when I will be able to post again, but I hope everyone has a good week.

Ready to paint again

I'm mostly bored without anything to take my mind off how I feel.  I was in the kitchen today and as usual, looked up at the 6 small paintings across the tops of the cabinets, and I like having them there.  Soooo, I decided the cabinets that are one corner away need some color above them as well, and to that end I looked up some fruits and vegetables that I haven't painted.  I think four pictures would do me fine for that wall.  I selected a stalk of celery, 3 red potatoes (I will be careful when painting a few "eyes" on them), and some grapes, both purple and green.  Some people refer to them as white grapes but I always think of them as green.   I think I also downloaded a photo of blackberries but I'm not sure if I want to include those, as I'd prefer something with a lot of color.

I downloaded some free photos from the internet and have roughly sketched the celery and potatoes., with notations as to shades of color, background, etc.  I'm not sure when I'll get started on them, but it's good to have a project or two going.  I do have a "palm tree project" in the works also.  I think I will enjoy working on them although I'm not sure how much I'll feel like painting for a while after dental surgery.  I find I do better when painting a little at a time rather than sitting and doing it all at once.    I'm trying to just mix a small amount of paint at a time so I can use it up rather than try to keep it moist and workable if I take a break.

The rain was really pelting down when I left the gym this morning and I wondered if Steve & Meg would bring the baby out in this.  It turned out Liam wasn't feeling well so they decided to come over on Monday.  I hope I'm lots better by then too.

Tomorrow I might make a run to Costco if I can get started early enough, so I can return a couple of items.  I just hope I can keep walking on the treadmill every day.  I was doing so well but really dropped the ball on my exercise and well being.  

This morning I got up to a house that was fairly comfortable.  Having the heater bring the temperature up just a few degrees before I get out of bed makes such a difference.  I'm happy with the space heaters when I move from room to room, but first thing in the morning the furnace is a godsend.

The rain is falling hard again.  The first clear day I need to go out and pull and spray weeds and grass.  It's getting out of hand.  Steve was planning to redo my back and side yards, but of course with a new baby I understand that is no longer on the drawing board.  

Hope you  are enjoying the weekend, whether you are a shopper who doesn't mind big crowds, or like me and will do most anything to avoid them.  I just hope I can get going early enough in the morning to miss the mobs! 

A word about photos.  It was a decision I wish I'd made in the very beginning of my blogging life to not post photos of my family, especially the children.  I sometimes look at my statistics and one interesting feature is the list of where viewers are coming from.  Most of course are from the U.S. and Canada, with several from other countries where I know people who live there and read my blog.  This month I have about 42 hits on my blog from Singapore.  I don't know anyone from Singapore and am not sure how I get so many "readers"; same is true about Russia and China.  To my knowledge I have never known anyone from those three countries.

I realize I don't know most of the readers from the U.S. either, but I just would prefer to not post my grandkids' pictures when I have no idea who is reading my blog in some of these places, or the attraction for them if they do read it.  What we put on the blog can never be retrieved and the images are out there, like it or not.  With facial recognition technology available to governments and individuals today, I just don't trust that it's all legit.

That brings up something I'd like to ask readers.  I understand many people read blogs but don't want to comment.  I'm ok with  folks remaining anonymous, but I sure would appreciate hearing from some that have never left a comment, and especially those in other countries.  I'd just like to say hello and welcome to all legitimate blog readers.