Greetings Dear Ones,
Today marked my 64th trip around our Sun. Glad we're all taking this ride together! I'm not sure if I have ever published a blog post on my birthday, but I decided that this would be a fun way to commemorate an important year. (Been feelin' a particular Beatles song all day. You know the one, right?)
But, before we get into that, let's catch up on some local art happenings...
Today marked my 64th trip around our Sun. Glad we're all taking this ride together! I'm not sure if I have ever published a blog post on my birthday, but I decided that this would be a fun way to commemorate an important year. (Been feelin' a particular Beatles song all day. You know the one, right?)
But, before we get into that, let's catch up on some local art happenings...
The evening of 9/20 marked the opening reception for the Brazosport Art League Main Gallery Artists Showcase featuring work by artists of the Houston Visual Artists Network (HVAN), including Suzanne Buckland, Joanne Kendall, Cora Salvino, Rodney Butler & Winnie Wells. It was a fun night with amazing artwork and some of Houston's nicest artists. The show runs through October 20th. (Check out photos of the artists below.)
The very next day (if you follow my blog you may see a pattern here) my son and I had an absolute blast @ the Gulf Coast Bird Observatory's annual Xtreme Hummingbird Xtravaganza! Truth be told we go to a lot of events in the area, but if it ties into art in some way, you can be sure that I'll be sharing it here. Before I get to the part about the art, I want to mention the important work that GCBO does for wildlife. This organization conducts large avian conservation projects including migration studies, habitat enhancement, land acquisition, regional habitat mapping, and more. The information they accumulate provides a scientific basis for the protection of birds and their habitats around the Gulf of Mexico and far beyond. During this event we got to watch them band some teeny-tiny hummers and let them go. They literally flew right past our heads!
Banding a full grown humming bird. Look closely!
This event had the cutest hummer mascot that was worn by an eight-year-old child. There were plenty of booths and activities for adults and kids including food and wildlife encounters.
Notable amongst the booths was wildlife photographer Mike Williams. He offered beautiful hummingbird posters for only 7.00 each! The purchase of these photos help fund GCBO. I hope you will visit their Lake Jackson, TX location. In addition to Mike's photos, they have all kinds of souvenirs for bird lovers including books, t-shirts, hats and even native plants to attract birds. Did I mention GCBO is a great place to bird watch? This stop should be at the top of every photographer and plein air painter's list.
One of Mike Williams' beautiful hummingbird prints.
We also met a fiber artist at the Xtravaganza. While not affiliated with GCBO, I thought her creations were adorable and worth a mention here. Click the images below to contact the artist via email.
One of our favorite booths was hosted by the National Wildlife Refuge. They had a chart to measure each guest's "wingspan" against a bird of the same size. Once our match was discovered we were given a name tag to wear with the name of the bird. My wingspan was equal to an Osprey. Wow! Can you guess which bird was Justin's match? BTW, we were both very happy with the results of this fun activity.
The two of us have been so busy! Between the hummingbird event and yesterday, Justin has enjoyed his chess club at Brazosport College, I've been to 2 concerts at the Clarion (highly recommend!), we went to the City of Clute's Sunday Funday featuring Willie Manchew ( a towering mosquito wearing a cowboy hat and boots) and live music, and I've been to a couple of BAL meetings. Holy Macaroni! There's no shortage of fun things to do around here.
As a side note, for those of you that don't know me personally, you might be wondering why I spend so much time with my grown son. Well, a few years back Justin had a TBI (traumatic brain injury). After a while he began to have cognition issues and difficulties with his short term memory, so he moved in and I care for him full time. He still has good long term memory which allows him to continue playing chess. He likes learning new things, although it might take him awhile longer than some folks to lay down new memories. One of his latest endeavors is writing poetry. It was a very nice surprise when he gifted me this poem on 10/2. (See below.)
As a side note, for those of you that don't know me personally, you might be wondering why I spend so much time with my grown son. Well, a few years back Justin had a TBI (traumatic brain injury). After a while he began to have cognition issues and difficulties with his short term memory, so he moved in and I care for him full time. He still has good long term memory which allows him to continue playing chess. He likes learning new things, although it might take him awhile longer than some folks to lay down new memories. One of his latest endeavors is writing poetry. It was a very nice surprise when he gifted me this poem on 10/2. (See below.)
So the big day rolled around. I woke to a beautiful sunny day and wondered, What will I do on my 64th birthday? Will I go out to eat with a friend, hop on a river boat tour, pedicure, movie? So many choices! My entire schedule was wiped clean so that I'd have the whole day to do whatever I wanted uninterrupted. After breakfast I realized that I do "special" stuff all the time. I just wanted to stay home and enjoy being 64. So, that's what I did.
Meditating on my front porch on this perfectly sunny morning.
Justin's (much appreciated) other present to me was doing my dishes all day. Isn't that nice? I spent a good part of the day finishing a cute little drawing that I started last night. (See below.)
"Born to Love You"
6"H x 8"W x 3/4"D framed
Graphite, Gel Pen, Colored Pencils on paper
65.00 framed (see below)
6"H x 8"W x 3/4"D framed
Graphite, Gel Pen, Colored Pencils on paper
65.00 framed (see below)
Midday I took a nap (HEY! I'm 64!).
After Justin's friend picked him up for an outing, I loaded the doggies in the Jeep and went adventuring around the area. We drove to Demi-John Island and Hide-Away-on-the-Gulf. Both are old neighborhoods I haven't visited for decades. Next I took Maximus and Poco for a fun walk around the lovely wooded Oyster Creek Municipal Park which they both thoroughly enjoyed. (The park sits right on Oyster Creek and has a 24 hour fishing pier so, again, if you are a photographer or a plein air painter, this is a great spot for both.)
A beautiful sunset and it was so-long to a relaxing agenda-free birthday. Many happy returns! ;-)
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