02

Final artwork FINALLY coming in!

Iron and Wine

Janna and I went out last night to hear Iron and Wine at the Mt. Baker Theater. What amazing musicians! I really like this band. Found them on MySpace.

http://www.myspace.com/ironandwine

Update on work

We had a snow day today! Hooray! I took a few minutes off from painting elephants...



And played with Phoebe and the Giesons.






Hi Connie! I took these pictures because we miss you around here. Thought you'd enjoy a scene you probably don't get much of in Thailand.....

40th Birthday Trip - Ben Ure Cabin

I got quite a surprise for my birthday, only knowing that I was to be prepared for several days of cold weather and to have the canoe ready. Janna kept it a surprise until the very end, when we took the turn off to Deception Pass State Park. Even then, I did not know that they had a cabin for rent. Until the last minute, I feared a cold and wet crossing with the tides pulling us out into the Georgia Strait. I was so surprised to see the short crossing to our destination, Ben Ure Island. This is a view of the crossing from the island. We parked on the other side.




Our cabin was hard to find at first, and we circled the island an extra time, looking for a likely landing. We managed at last, but it was tricky on the rocks! This is all that can be seen of Ben Ure cabin from the water.


It was tricky getting the canoe above the high tide line! No beach - only slippery rocks. We were proud of our skills.




Note: looking for good Christmas idea? Do you SEE the hat I am wearing??


Our home sweet home for several wonderful days. We sure enjoyed the view.



Lots of cribbage had to be played. Janna of course wins most of the time.



We were also MAJORLY proud of a warm fire created solely out of Janna's stubbornness and a whole lot of wet wood. Next time I'm bringing Duraflame logs.


The kitchen was perfect, as were all the delicious meals. I didn't have to plan a THING!




We had a visitor just off the front porch. The other one was just off to the side. They pulled us out on the deck with their loud chirrrippings.






We canoed for several hours on Sunday to have lunch at Ben Ure spit. The temperature had us paddling again in no time. It was cold!

A bit more relaxing to do......




And then, sadness, we had to load up for home....
We'll be back!

Cover Final

Here is the final cover image for the paint process. I might do some digital correction later. We'll see.





Also, I have to say that I love my puppy. He gives me so much happiness every day.

Today's Progress, Part One

I'm painting this one by hand, so let's see how it goes. Here is my starting image today.

I won't be done with this whole book until Dec 15th, so I guess I won't hear from the pub until after that.

Also, Janna and I went wine tasting at an event here in town. There were maybe 80 different brands and kinds of wine there, along with all kinds of cheeses and stuff. Honestly, after an entire evening I didn't find one wine I liked better than Trader Joe's $3.99 Merlot. Does that make me a wine idiot? Perhaps, but a lucky one! What if I found myself dieing for the $80 a bottle stuff I got to taste last night?

Felt Jealous - Needed Blog

With my whole family having blogs, I started to feel a little left out and decided I'd better post the daily goings-on 'round here.

Well, here's what I'm working on today - front cover for my elephant book. Also, lots of emailing to schools in Oregon and a little wine and cheese tasting tonight. Yay!