Monday

National Novel Writing Month (NANOWRIMO) month begins tomorrow.  I thought maybe I would skip it this year, but found myself doing research on mental telepathy this moring (something I planned to include in the story).  So maybe I am going to try it again.

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Boy, this a pair of pathetic attempts.  Two more postcard size watercolors.  Maybe you can recognize the top one as Square Top, or maybe not.  The bottom one is supposed to be Red Canyon.

Kat has been jumping up on my art table and fussing at me.  I finally figured out her problem.  She drinks from my water container, and the water was dirty.  Picky thing!

Ahh, supper last night.  Chicken breast with onions and mushrooms, rice, and broccoli.

Sunday

 Paul and Tracy went to a Broncos football game today in Denver and left Daisy home .  Her first time being left home alone all day.   Hope she was good.

My friend Nancy sent me several pictures of polar bears playing with sled dogs in Canada.  Wonderful photos!  I have seen these pictures around on the Internet for several years.  I even contacted the photographer once to inquire about buying a print.  Yikes!  He wanted $250 for a print. 

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Sure haven't done anything today - most of the day spent reading on my Kindle.



Saturday

Now playing on my iPod, Sawmill Creek, "Cold Wyoming Snow".

You gotta' love that Hobbes.

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Now here's food for thought.  This was my horosccope this morning.

"It's time for you to see the world as a big, beautiful ball covered in happy people who want only the best for one another."

I'm not sure I can do that.

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I guess I'll work on  my cow and calf painting today.  I put fresh paint on the palette yesterday, and better try to use it before it dries up.



Friday

Today was the last day of the oil painting lessons. Kay says she  will continue the lessons in January if we want.  I think all  of us are planning to take them.  Maybe I'll get a painting finished yet!

Stayed for lunch today at the senior center.  Very good.

This cow moose and her calf were in my driveway this morning, working on the willows.  I took pictures from my bedroom window.  I leave the screens off some of my windows so I can open the window and take pictures.  I feel like I'm sitting  in a blind up in a tree.

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So sorry to  hear of Debi Ruland's death in Utah this morning.  She and Hank got to enjoy being snow birds for several years in their big fifth wheeler.  She was a great lady.



I've spent more than an hour uploading this video. I cancelled it once and started uploading again. Guess I need to be more patient - upload and then go do something else for about an hour.

Our iPad expert.  Think how good she'd be if she could see!  A rough day at preschool doesn't do much for a girl's hairdo.

Several years ago, I was involved as the kindergarten teacher in the custody case of one of my students.  I went to visit with her attorney, and was asked all kinds of questions.  One question I was asked if her hair was combed and did she look neat and well groomed when she got to school.  I had to laugh, and I told the attorney "No, she doesn't.  She's a little five year old girl, she rides a school bus to school every morning wearing a warm hat.  And her hair looks like  it."

The attorney laughed and decided a nice hairdo didn't have that much to do with a child being properly cared for.

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Bebee F. posted this on Facebook, and it makes me laugh.

Another dead mouse on the floor this morning.  I didn't see this one right away, so Kat moved it to the middle of the bathroom floor.



Tuesday

I'm trying to decide if I want to get up and take my laundry downsairs and throw it in the washer.  But my motto is "Never do today what you can put off untill tomorrow".  Works for me.

Kasey came upstairs when she got home last night and got on the iPad.  She was tracing letters to spell words.  Every time she finished a word, she would run to the top of the stairs and yell down "Hey guys, I just spelled zebra, or whatever word it was.  She would tell me the beginning sound, and also signed many  of them.  My book on sign language is downstairs.  I think I better bring it up and refresh myself. 

You would think I would work with KC, being a retired teacher, but I don't She is learning so much in pre school I can't believe it.

My bobcat bait from a few years ago has been moved.  I don't know what hauled it from along my fence up to a pile of dead willows on the ditchbank.

A deer died up against my fence several years ago.  It was winter, I was gone, and never knew it was there until early spring and the snow began to melt off it.  I still wouldn't have noticed it, but a bobcat started coming in every day to eat on it.  I wanted the bobcat to keep coming, so I didn't have it hauled off.  I got some wonderful photos of the bobcat out my upstairs window.

Monday

 Here is the little postcard size painting I did yesterday.  Kind of funny looking painting, but at least I got my brush wet.

My quakies are always among the last in town to leaf out in the spring, and also the last to turn golden and drop their leaves.  Some years they don't even get a chance to turn, beause we have a hard freeze or two before the leaves turn.  Then they are just brown.  This year, my treees are gorgeous.

I have lost track of how many mice Kat has caught this fall.  She left another one for me on the floor yesterday morning.  In the meantime, she loves to attack my foot when I'm walking across the floor.  Not good, Kat!

Sunday

Another beautiful day. Barrie and Doug are elk hunting, Kasey is with her Dad, and I am just hanging out and watching the QVC cooking show on TV.

 Here is the little post card sized painting of Pilot Butte.  Please don't make fun of my horses!  I know they're deformed, but I can't paint a horse, let alone one that's less than a half inch tall!

The last Watercolor Artist magazine had an article in it on using the iPad while plein aire painting.  This artist uses it to get a quick value study and composition for a painting.  The app costs $4.00.  I got it, but I certainly didn't get a result like this!  Maybe with more practice.

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Is anyone organizing an "Occupy Pinedale" protest?  What would we protest?  Ridley's?  The three story motels?  

Saturday

 An item from the catalog I was looking at yesterday. It's a redneck wine glass.   I like it!

National Novel Writing Month is coming up soon, and I'm considering trying it again.  If I do, be careful, you might be in it!

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A lazy day.  Beautiful and sunny.  I have a load of clean clothes on my bed, which I might or might not get folded and put away today.  My bed is big, so there is plenty of room for me to sleep with the laundry on one side.

I found the little water color book I misplaced about a week ago.  I intended to do a small painting every day in it. I got one finished today of Pilot Butte, and what might be called wild horses. You have to use your imagination on the horses.  They are tiny.

Now playing on XM radio Highway, "I Want you to Love me Like my Dog", Billy Currington.

Here is the small 6" x 8" painting I am attempting to do.

Kay critiqued our paintings in progress in class today.  I am so frustrated with it, but she was very encouraging.  But darn it, she can see green where I can't see any!

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I got a catalog with some funny tee shirts in it.  Some of the sayings are so clever.  Here are two of them I liked.



Thursday

 Barrie got my mail for me today, and my iPad cover came.  Slick little gadget, but I thought I was never going to get it out the the heavy plastic packing!  Why do they package things like that?  You need a blowtorch and a hatchet just to get them unpacked.  And I absolutely hate things that are "sealed for your protection".

Also got another little Cotman watercolor travel set from EBay.  This one is called the "pocket plus".  The quarter beside it gives an idea of the size of it when it's open. These are the greatest little things to take with you at all times along with a small book or pad of paper.  Several of the artists who paint at Rendezvous Pointe have these now.  They sell for about $25 in art supply catalogs.  I got this one on EBay for $9.

I also got a bill for $485 from Petersen landscaping for 1500 sq feet of sod.  It's address to "Tim" at my box number. 

And fun stuff - the new Watercolor Artist magazine and new art supply catalogs!

Wednesday

This must be "old Barrie pictures" week.

 This is a photo of Barrie on Seaweed.  Seaweed's nickname was "Charmin" because she was so soft.  (Remember "Don't squeeze the Charmin"?  She would be lathered up almost as soon as we left camp. 

I used to put Barrie in the back seat of our little jeep and go out for a day of photography.  I must have really worn her out on this day.  She went to sleep standiing up in the back seat with her head on the back of the front seat. Nope, no child restraint seat.  The jeep didn't have seat belts.

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Had a nice lunch at Rendezvous Pointe today.  Now I feel like a nap.

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I want people to know why I look the way I do.  I've traveled a long way and some of the roads weren't paved.

I remember when Facebook meant falling asleep while reading a book.

Tuesday

No pictures of Kasey today, but I am posting one of Barrie when she was little.  She is straightening out Seaweed's forelock.  Seaweed was a G&F pack mare, and absolutely kid-proof.

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Barrie came in with a smile on her face after going to court this morning.  She should (hopefully) start receiving child support again now and proof of insurance.  Maybe something can be done about the visitation schedule later.





Sunday

Roger says my blog is not complete without pictures of Kasey. So I guess I better get on the ball and post some photos of her.

No fear!  I downloaded a couple of apps to my iPad that I thought Kasey might enjoy.  She handles the iPad like she has used one for years.

It took over an hour for this video to upload.  This is a book I keep upstairs. 

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Barrie was cleaning up in the kitchen this morning, and Doug was in the bedroom making a phone call.  Kasey came in the kitchen and told her mom she had chained Doug to the bed.  Barrie told her she didn't think that was appropriate.



Saturday

Cooking up a storm.  Well, the one on the left cooks.  The one on the right supervises, and I hope cleaned up.

This was supper, roast beef, mashed potatoes, and veggies.  Yummy!

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Woke up at 4:00 this morning to flashing lights reflecting on my bedroom ceiling.  An ambulance was parked in our driveway.  Don't have a clue what was going on.  Couldn't have been too serious, I could hear people talking and laughing.  When the ambulance finally left, two cars and two pickups also left. 

friday

I got a good start on a small oil painting of a cow and calf in Kay's class today, Maybe I can do this. I will work on it some more this afternoon. 

Barrie's friend from Encampment is here.  Something really yummy smelling was in a crockpot in the kitchen when I got home.  He even brought his own crockpot!

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No pictures, so thought I would post this.  Definitely my poster!



Thursday

Enjoyed lunch at Rendezvous Point yesterday with Judi and Clair.  Don't see Clair very often.  There were several people there I hadn't seen for years.

Didn't even take my watercolors to art group -- took a new pencil drawing instead of a cow and calf.

I am not a big fan of the iPad as yet.  It was finally delivered by the wandering UPS man about 9:30 Tuesday night.  It was their second delivery attempt.  They left a note on the front door Monday saying no one was home to sign for it, and Barrie and I were both there all day Monday.  So my iPad and I did not get off to a good start.

I have downloaded a few apps to it, but not much.  The stupid keyboard keeps rearranging itself, and sometimes it doesn't even show the "@" key.  It's a little hard to enter your email address when that symbol is missing, so I have wasted a lot of time trying to log onto some sites.

I got onto my Amazon account page and tried to watch one of the movies on the iPad.  I found I have to have Flash Player to watch my Amazon movies, and Flash Player and the iPad are not compatible.  I  wrote Amazon and they said, sure enough, their movies would not play on the iPad.

Next, I downloaded a few songs from iTunes, some I had already purchased.  The speakers aren't bad, but why would I want to load music on it when I have an iPod sitting across the room from me, already loaded with about a thousand songs, and docked on nice Bose speakers?

Then for the Crackle.com movies - they would play, sort of, but not nearly the quality I see on the laptop.

Now what?  Haven't tried any of the games yet, nor the cameras. And I guess I will try some more new apps - there are thousands, most of them free.

Tuesday

I really hate UPS.  I am expecting a package and the tracking page yesterday said it was out on the truck for delivery.  No show.  This morning, the tracking page tells me it is rescheduled to be delivered today, and is out on the truck for delivery.  About half the time, I get email from UPS telling me no one was home to receive the package and they left it at the post office.  By then, the post office is closed, and I can't get the package until the next day.

The shipment progress is interesting:

The order was processed in China on Oct. 7.  On Oct. 7, it left EPZ China and arrived in Chengdu, China.  On the 8th, it departed from Anchorage.  Then on the 9th, it again departed Chengdu China and Shanghai, and arrived in Anchorage again.  Still on the 9th, it went from Louisville, KY to Salt Lake, and the 10th it went to Rock Springs. 

I seriously think something is wrong with the UPS tracking system. 

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Calvin's homework assignment

Years ago, Chuck took me arrowhead hunting up Tourist Creek while we were camped at Three Forks Park.  Do you think he was trying to get rid of me?

Ron Remick, Gary Neely and I were in camp one day while Chuck and Ralph walked into a lake up above the rocks.  Another summer kid was with us, and he was an irritating braggart.  He kept talking about how he could ride anything.  So Ron, Gary and I put him on one of the pack horses.  The horse took about four steps and blew up, and of course the kid bucked off.

Chuck chewed us out because if he'd been hurt, it was a three hour ride out of there.  Sure was funny, though. 



Monday

This is a copy of a drawing I did years ago.  The first one I did was much better.  This guy has a problem.  He's not sitting on anything.  And his hand is too big.  What's that Toby Keith song?  "I'm Not as Good as I Once Was"

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Barrie has had company since Thursday.  Nice guy, and he cooks too!  He left this morning to drive back to Encampment.

Sunday

Still a few leaves hanging onto the top of this little tree.  They look so bright against the dark background.

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Barrie said our furnace was out yesterday.  It needs a new part, and "they"  were supposed to order it for me last year.  It usually works okay, but sometimes you have to open the front and push on this round black thing.  I called them twice, and then spring came and of course I forgot it.

Barrie thinks she can order the part from the company and put it on herself.  That would be nice.

Kay started a painting last week to demonstrate how she begins a new piece.  She makes it look so easy!  I know better. 

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Joe suddenly realized his wife had fallen off her horse, which was quite a relief to him, as just an hour earlier, he thought he'd gone deaf.

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Friday

I wasn't going to post any pictures today - I made fun of myself for always running out to take pictures of the first snowfall for about the last forty years. Then these guys wandered into my back yard, and I got the camera out.

This big buck was bored, maybe?  There were five deer, two bucks and three does.  They all look sleek and fat.

The buck is a five point.  Handsome guy, isn't he? 

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I didn't expect to be able to upload this video today.  I tried all day yesterday.

Shorty was barking, and I yelled out the window for him to be quiet.  The pups had evidently not noticed upstairs windows before, and she was very excted to see me at the window.  Lunatic!

Pile of pups

It's hard work to play and dig all day.  Time for a nap.

I tried all morning to upload a video.  I guess I will just give up on it.  At least I can stilll upload a photo.  Facebook won't let me upload anything!  grrr

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Started a litle 6" x 8" oil painting this morning.  Frustrating!  I sure don't handle oil paints very well. 

Kat is curious about what I am doing, and keeps jumping up on the table.  That could be a disaster.

traffic

I sort of got stuck in traffic today when I came home at noon.  Rush hour traffic, Pinedale style.  I'm not positive, but I think this was Loziers.  They always bring their horses through town.  They go from the ranch to the Soda Lake Road, then through town.  There were about 40 head, with quite a few mules in the bunch.

I must have been inspired by the fall colors last weekend.  I finished this in art group today.

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Found a dead mouse on my floor this morning.  Yay, Kat!  That goofy cat really is good for something.  That is the fourth mouse this fall.

Tuesday

A short video of Kasey.  They are learning about dinosaurs in her preschool, and she made a "Kaseysaurus".  She also sang me a song about T Rex.  She loves school - Barrie is picking out her kindergarten teacher already!

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Lazy day today.  I did a load of laundry and worked on a drawing for a while.  Now I think I will read the rest of the day.  Life is so hard!

Looks like rain this afternoon.  That would be nice.

 

Monday

I have a tiny set of travel watercolors with a little 4" x 6" Moleskine pad of watercolor paper. I've been trying to make myself do a little something in it every day.  After all, shouldn't take much effort to paint something that small, should it?  Here are some of the ones I did last week.

And Kasey painted me a CALIPITTER!

Fischer Price is coming out with a Faith Hill/Tim McGraw Ken and Barbie doll set.  Good grief!

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 Why do scuba divers fall backwards off the side of the boat into the water?

Because if they fell forward, they'd still be in the boat.



fall colors

Beautiful day!  We started with breakfast at the Wrangler, then drove up Skyline to Elkheart Park.

No matter how many times we see the trees change colors, we all go out with our cameras and take pictures, just as if  we'd never seen it before!  And what do you bet that when it snows, we will all do the same thing, and take pictures of the first snow?

This is the ski hill.  Beautiful!

This stand of red quakies was off the main road.  With a little creative 4wheeling, Barrie got us up closer to them. 

Gina mentioned that the camera doesn't do the colors justice.  She is so right.  I think our old film cameras did a better job.   I just told Barrie today that I'm always dissappointed in my photographs of fall, because they look washed out.  Barrie said, "That's why you have Photoshop, Mom."

So, I admit I brought up the saturation until they looked like what my eyes saw today. 

Kasey found a piece of paper in my jacket pocket today, and played with it for a long time. She kept asking me to watch her fold it into a box.  I was busy looking at the trees, and she kept saying "Grandma, watch."  I finally told her it was like watching grass grow, and Barrie and I got the giggles.  It's a good thing KC is developing a good sense of humor.