Painting my Pets

I'm not actually painting my pets but am painting pictures of my pets in a whimsical style.  Having a lot of fun with it too.  I started with Roscoe.

 I worked on two at once so one could be drying while I worked on the other one.

 Then I started on Windy.

Of course I couldn't leave Gunnar out.

Loves Carrots

Then this girl slipped in.

The llamas said "Me next!"

Surprise!

Gracie

 

 

I'm going to keep working on these paintings since I am having so much fun with them.  Using acrylic paint on recycled cereal box cardboard.  Our weather has moved into a cooler damper mode so hay harvesting is put off until the dry heat returns.  What are you doing with your summer?

Working in the forest

Living out here in the west Coast Range mountains, we heat with wood which of course means putting up firewood every year, usually about 6 or 7 cords.  Luckily, Chain saw man loves working his chain saws, which translates to lots of firewood.

Can you spot Roscoe above?

It also means lots of chainsaws.

These are just the ones he brings along for this wood cutting session.

And other tools of the trade.  That hook looking one below is a peavey, used for turning logs over.  He likes to paint his tools red to make them easier to see in the forest duff.

This maple wood is destined to be burned in the winter of 2019-20.  

 Above is next winters wood.  Some fir.

 Some maple we pulled out of our forest last summer.

 Our mostly empty wood storage shed, ready to be filled again.  On the right side of the photo you can see more stacked maple wood.  We had a big wind storm come through a couple of years ago and it knocked down lots of big leaf maple trees.  We have been harvesting it ever since.

 This is chainsaw man's work station, where he sharpens the chains and works on saws.  Most of his saws are Stil's.

He spent yesterday cleaning up these hand tools and putting new handles on some of them.  That double bit axe at the top left is an old hand forged one.  Looks brand new after he finished with it.

As I was walking around taking pictures this morning, I heard a scratchy noise and looked over to see this Douglas squirrel.  They like to chew on old antlers.  That is a moss covered elk antler he is chewing on that I found in the forest.  Squirrels have to keep their teeth filed down because they keep growing same as a beaver's teeth do.

The sun is shining, our hay is liable to be cut any day now.  Till next time, 
Be Well.

ICAD or Index Card A Day

I'm participating in this challenge for the second year in a row.  You can check it out here: ICAD at the Daisy Yellow blog.  Here are my cards so far, not in order.

FLY

WILD

LIVELY

BULBS

Feeding the Hummingbirds

WONDER

GIRL FRIENDS

ONE WHOLE HEART

ME AND YOU

GRIZABELLA

BUNNIES

BE KIND

SMALL MATTERS

A Bee Loud Glade

I placed the scroll (that I showed in my previous post) in a bee loud glade in my forest.  Not sure if this is where it will stay, but it is there for now.

That little black spot in the background is my Roscoe, who was so patiently waiting along with Gunnar while I spent about an hour planting some newly dug daffodil and blue bell bulbs all over this little sunny glade.

There are a lot of Cascara trees on my property, and the bees are indeed very loud in them right now since the Cascara is flowering.  Cascara, also known as Chittum which is a politically correct reference to the fact that the chittum bark is widely used as an herbal laxative.
I hope next spring I can share a picture of this glade full of daffodils and blue bells!
The title of this post is taken from this poem.

The Lake Isle of Innisfree

By William Butler Yeats

I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,

And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made;

Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honey-bee,

And live alone in the bee-loud glade.

And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow,

Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;

There midnight’s all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow,

And evening full of the linnet’s wings.

I will arise and go now, for always night and day

I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;

While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey,

I hear it in the deep heart’s core.