Back To The Real World

I'm home! I got here around 11 o'clock this morning. It was a bit of culture shock to realize that I had to make my own lunch and clean up after myself. Last week was a time out of time with no outside noise or responsibilities, just meals and class. We painted all morning, all afternoon, and most evenings. The teacher went home before supper but the students staying on campus went back down to the classroom after supper to paint.  All of our meals were planned, prepared, served, and cleaned up by someone else which was the height of luxury. Worth every penny of the fee. This is the Friday afternoon painting of a barn and field. I felt really good about it.

 

One thing I've done every time I've taken the watercolor class is make notes in a watercolor sketchbook and then paint the picture on the opposite page. Every session fills up about half of a book so it's time to order another copy for next year's class. Because I'm definitely going back. I feel like I get better every time, I'm not giving up now.

 

After I unpacked, which didn't really take long, I got to go to LC and OJ's piano recital. They did great. Neither one was perfect but it was obvious they'd practiced hard and are getting better all the time. We went for ice cream afterwards and DS passed along the flowers sent by DD for Mother's Day. I guess they were delivered on Friday and he saved them for me. They're beautiful!

 

While I ate lunch I looked out the window and saw two special birds. First I noticed a Rose-breasted Grosbeak on the platform feeder. It took a couple tries before I managed to catch him.

 

At the same time a female Oriole stopped. She perched on top of the platform feeder and then swooped over to the grape jelly for a little snack. She was pretty skittish too but she finally landed long enough for a couple shots.

 

Then in the late afternoon I looked up and there was a hen turkey stalking across the retaining wall. They are so huge! Shortly after I took this picture I went out to fill the feeders and she hid among the daylilies and was pretty well hidden.

 

Yesterday I was excited to see that the Dwarf Lake Iris that they'd saved from a road-widening project and transplanted to The Clearing were beginning to bloom. It's hard to describe how tiny these flowers are but the petals are about as long as two fingernails. Just itty bitty things but so pretty. Maybe I'll take a stab at painting one someday.

 

I got so tired every day last week that I turned in around 9 o'clock. It's almost 9:30 and I'm really fading fast. I'm glad to be home and in my own bed with my own bathroom. It was nice up there in Room #2 but I'm happy to be back.

 

--Barbara